Adidas see great upside in 'stellar' Arsenal brand after years of under-performance

Adidas believe that the “stellar” global brand of Arsenal is ripe for exploiting after agreeing a £60million-a-year deal to manufacture the Gunners’ kit from next season.

Arsenal announced a five-year agreement with the German sportswear giants earlier this week, ending an association with rivals Puma that dated back to 2014 in a deal that doubles their annual return and places them on a par with Chelsea as the Premier League’s second highest earner behind Manchester United.

The Gunners last wore Adidas during the 1993-94 season but the company put together a sizeable offer – sufficient that Puma opted not to activate their right to first refusal on an extension at the same price – to bring Arsenal back to “the three stripes”.

Indeed chief executive Kasper Rorsted described moving for Arsenal as “a no-brainer” for Adidas.

“When we look upon the Arsenal brand, it’s a stellar global brand that’s been under-performing in the last couple of years,” he said at the New York Stock Exchange.

“We believe that long-term there is so much upside in Arsenal.

“If you look at how they’re playing right now, 5-1 at Craven Cottage against Fulham, playing some of the best football, some of the best goals were made … [Aaron] Ramsey when he scored the goal with his heel.

“It’s just stellar football. They had a good weekend, but in the wrong kit!”

Arsenal’s deal is believed to be the joint-fifth most valuable in world football, behind only Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Manchester United. It is double that which Nike pay Tottenham to manufacture their kits.

The new Adidas contract, along with the £40m-plus per season extension the club agreed with sponsor airline Emirates in February, should ease the financial pressure that has developed at Arsenal in recent months.

A £350,000-a-week contract for Mesut Ozil and big money deals for new signings Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan pushed the club’s wage bill over £200million per annum at a time when the riches of Champions League football are no longer so easily accessible for the north London club.

Head coach Unai Emery will hope these new sponsors can top up his transfer fund, which was relatively restricted for a club of Arsenal’s size as they spent £70m in his first summer window at the club. The Gunners hope to sign a new midfielder with Aaron Ramsey expected to depart and have closely monitored Miguel Almiron, valued by MLS side Atlanta United at over £30m.