January 26 – Mitre, a brand of UK-based Pentland Group, has been unveiled as the new official match ball sponsor of Singapore’s S. League in a new five-year deal which sees the world’s oldest manufacturer of footballs become the league’s official football and product supplier.
Mitre takes over from Hiroshima, Japan-based Mikasa Corporation and will be providing its Mitre Delta Hyperseam football for S-League, Prime League, Singapore Cup, League Cup, COE League, National Football League and Island Wide League matches.
Alfred Toh, general Manager of Teamwork Sports LLP Mitre’s licensee for Singapore and Malaysia, commented on the new deal saying, “This partnership is a great opportunity for us to build brand awareness island-wide, whilst creating new sales opportunities as football is watched and loved by many in Singapore. Football is proven as the number one sport, and the S.League provides us with a new platform to demonstrate the technological advancement of our products whilst encouraging purchase amongst amateur players and fans.
“Mitre is dedicated to being at the heart of football and improving the quality of play at every level.”
Mitre was first established in Huddersfield, England, in 1817, making it the world’s first manufacturer of footballs and it has deals in place with the Football League, the Wales Football Association, the Capital One Cup and Scottish Football Associations.
Mitre is also associated with the AFF Suzuki Cup and in December 2014 CEO Carl Davis told 442 magazine that: “South-East Asia is a really strong market for us. We’re building a decent following here in Singapore and have started to understand football here a lot better.”
Pentland Brands also has strong links with the region and in 2014 half of its supply base was in China, a quarter in Southeast Asia and the remainder in South Asia, Europe and the rest of the world.
The Mitre Delta Hyperseam ball which will be used in the S League is fused and bonded rather than handstitched giving it zero water uptake and consistency in wet and dry conditions. It is the same ball used in the Football League and Scottish Professional League and is available for £110 on Mitre’s site, whilst a Mitre-made replica sells for £16.
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