Nike has ended its 13 year partnership with Manchester United, with the club now tying up with adidas in a sponsorship deal worth double the amount.
According to The Daily Mail, Nike did not take up its right to match adidas offer to continue the partnership with United worth £30m a year for 13 years because it “no longer considers it value for money”.
Meanwhile, Manchester United has rejected bids from both Warrior and Under Armour to replace Nike, finally choosing to tie with adidas in a deal worth a record £70m annually, double its deal with Nike, said UK-based The Drum.
adidas becomes the global technical sponsor and official licensing partner of Manchester United for ten years.
“We expect total sales to reach 1.5 billion GBP during the duration of our partnership,” said Herbert Hainer, adidas Group CEO.
According to The Daily Mail, this also means United has finally beaten arch-rivals Real Madrid, whose £31m-a-year deal is the next biggest in Europe.
Adidas also partners Real Madrid, FC Bayern Munich, Chelsea FC, AC Milan, Flamengo and Juventus.
adidas was also the sponsor of the Germany and Argentina teams for the World Cup, and pulled in the most visibility during the World Cup season for a brand. (Read also: The brand that's winning in the World Cup)