Manchester United hands over football kit rights to Adidas

Manchester United (ManU), one of the top clubs in the English Premier League has transferred the rights of its football kit to German sports-lifestyle major Adidas from American sportswear maker Nike. Now, Adidas stores in India will offer the new Manchester United kits within the next two days. In another move, it has decided not to renew contract with Indus League Clothing, a part of the Kishore Biyani-led Future Group, which operated 12 flagship retail stores of the club’s merchandise across the country. It would scout for a new local partner in the country.

ManU's traditional red jersey made famous by soccer legends like Eric Cantona, David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney, will no longer bear the ‘iconic swoosh’ by Nike but will have 'the three stripes'. In India, Nike retails the official team jersey and fan wear for clubs such as Barcelona, Paris St Germain and Manchester City.

Adidas already sells kits of other European clubs such as, Real Madrid, Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Juventus and AC Milan in the country and now ManU would turn out to be a growth driver becoming the best-selling merchandise. The club has a huge fan-following in the country and Adidas will organise initiatives like contest for fans in the next few months. Adidas witnesses around 40-50 percent sales of football kits driven by kids.