The dominance of adidas in the Premier League has begun

Arsenal, Manchester United, Fulham, Aston Villa, Newcastle, Nottingham Forest, to which will be added Liverpool and Leeds United (close to promotion to the Premier League). A total of 8 teams sponsored by adidas will be part of the next season, considering the recent addition of Liverpool to the Three Stripes roster, but most importantly assuming the relegation of Leicester to the Championship - otherwise, we would be talking about potentially 9 clubs. This marks a major shift: the Premier League is becoming a league dominated by the duopoly of the two biggest German sports brands, adidas and PUMA. The latter will officially replace Nike starting from the 2025/26 season as the supplier of the match balls, and as reported by several authoritative sources, for the first time in the history of the top English league, there will be 4 versions of match balls used throughout all 38 matchdays of the season. It’s a historic turn that marks the glorious moment for adidas, while at the same time pushing Nike to improve, to respond to this uncontested dominance of adidas in sportswear, which is also expressed in the new Club World Cup format scheduled for this summer.

With all probabilities (considering that Leicester's comeback is highly unlikely), it will not be a record for adidas. In the 2013/14 season, the German company sponsored as many as 9 clubs, although the only top club among them was Chelsea. The remarkable aspect of the upcoming season will be not only the number of sponsored clubs but also their prestige (Arsenal, Manchester United, and Liverpool), alongside clubs that are still in a growing phase of their history, such as Aston Villa and Newcastle, and two objectively smaller clubs like Fulham and Nottingham Forest. adidas might also be targeting expansion, adding further clubs and potentially reaching (or even surpassing) the percentage sponsorship record held by Umbro in 1992, with 11 clubs sponsored out of 22 participants.

adidas' dominance in the Premier League will most likely also be expressed through greater attention to the clubs. Starting next season, all clubs sponsored by adidas will be divided into just 3 Tiers, groups that form the pyramid structure of sponsorship levels, to differentiate the contracts made with various clubs. Each agreement includes the agreed amounts, seasonal activations related to the club, and, of course, the kits and lifestyle collections. The Tier 1 group of clubs, which will include Liverpool, will retain the name Elite Clubs, while those in the second tier, like Newcastle and Aston Villa, Celtic, River Plate, Boca Juniors, and Flamengo, will be defined as Local Elite Clubs. This leads us to hope that even clubs not considered top could enjoy the same benefits as top clubs, such as shirts with more detailed features and aesthetic attention.