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After months of will-they-won’t-they speculation, Spanish La Liga giants FC Barcelona and sportswear behemoth Nike have announced a new contract that will last until 2038.
FC Barcelona announced the new “multi-year partnership agreement” on their website on Saturday, November 9. The club said the deal “brings a new collaborative strategic partnership model between the two organizations.”
This new partnership consolidates Nike as a Main Partner of the Club and Official Technical Partner across all professional and amateur teams, bringing a unique model that strengthens the brands association and fuels the global retail and licensing business growth. Nike has a key strategic role in the Club’s Retail Operations and together with Barça Licensing & Merchandising will join forces in the development of specific plans related to product creation, supply chain and global distribution.
— FCBarcelona.com
Nike has outfitted Barça since 1998. Since then, Barça’s men’s first team has won four Champions League titles, 12 La Liga titles, seven Copas del Rey, three World Club Cups and three European Super Cups wearing Nike uniforms, while the women’s first team has won nine league titles, three UEFA Women’s Champions League titles and nine Copas de la Reina in that time.
The terms of the deal between Barça and Nike were not disclosed in Saturday’s announcement, but ESPN reports “the deal will total significantly more than €100 million ($107m) per year, but that the agreement is incremental and that the total amount is also dependent on certain add-ons.” They also report that Barça president Joan Laporte has previously claimed it would be the biggest deal of its kind in world soccer.
According to Mundo Deportivo, Barça will receive €1.7 billion over 14 years, or about €121 million per year. It also includes a signing bonus of €158 million, which will also be spread over the 14 years of the contract. Mundo Deportivo also reports that Barça was allowed to field offers from other companies, and they did receive a proposal from German sportswear brand Puma, which Nike then matched.
The previous contract between Nike and Barça was set to expire in 2024. There was some friction between the two sides earlier this year, with Footy Headlines reporting in July that a Spanish court had blocked Barça’s attempted to end their contract early. They also reported that retailers were having a hard time ordering Barcelona products from Nike, and Barça’s 2024-25 third kit celebrating women’s sport was released about three weeks later than similar third kits for other high-profile clubs outfitted by Nike.
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