Stoke City have confirmed that adidas will become their new Official Kit Supplier for the 2010-11 season after signing a long-term deal with the world's number one football brand.
The Club's new kit and training wear will carry the famous 'Three Stripes' after City sealed the biggest technical kit partnership agreement in their history.
The adidas deal represents another major step forward as the Club team up with a sporting giant renowned for the quality and excellence of their market-leading products.
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"This is a fantastic agreement for the Club and the association with a global brand like adidas is a glowing indication of how far we have come," commented City's Chief Executive Tony Scholes in announcing the Official Kit Supplier agreement.
"Twelve of the 32 countries at this summer's World Cup Finals will be wearing adidas kit and many of the top clubs in Europe, including Real Madrid, AC Milan, Chelsea, Liverpool and Bayern Munich, use them as their kit suppliers. That gives you an idea of the significance of such an agreement to this Football Club as we look to continue moving forward.
"The new home kit and training wear will be exclusively unveiled at our Player of the Year Stadium Show on Sunday."
City's new home kit for the 2010-11 season features a technical fabric called ClimaCool which is designed to take sweat away from the body quickly to ensure the players remain comfortable and dry and able to perform to their best.
Gavin Thomson, Sales Director adidas UK and Ireland, said: "adidas is delighted to be partnering with Stoke City Football Club. Stoke City has a rich heritage and a strong and ambitious future in the Premier League. We look forward to a very rewarding and successful relationship for both parties."
The agreement with adidas will involve the rebranding of the Club's three shops, the Britannia Stadium Superstore and the Club Stores located in the Potteries Shopping Centre and the Roebuck Shopping Centre in Newcastle-under-Lyme.
As well as being the number one brand in football and one of the main sponsors of the FIFA 2010 World Cup Finals in South Africa, adidas are the leading manufacturer in Europe of technical and performance products and other sportswear.
Questions and Answers:
Q. How long is the agreement?
A. This is an initial four-year deal, but Stoke City is committed to developing long term partnerships as has been demonstrated with the association with Britannia, which is one of the longest sponsorship agreements in English football. So it is hoped this is the start of a long and mutually beneficial relationship.
Q. What are the launch dates?
A. The unveiling of the new home kit and training wear will be at the Player of the Year Stadium Show on Sunday 2nd May.
Training wear will be available from Monday 10th May in all the newly-refurbished and rebranded Club Stores.
For the home kit, all pre-orders online will be delivered 24 hours before they are available in-store on Thursday 3rd June.
The away kit will be launched in August with a date to be confirmed.
Q. Can you confirm the speculation that the home shirt will have a plain back?
A. The shirt will have a plain back for the 2010-11 season.
Q. The modern new design of Stoke City's home shirt is a departure from the Club's traditional style. So why have they chosen to have a solid red panel rather than stripes on the back of the shirt?
A. The Club thought long and hard about the move away from the more traditional look to the shirts and when the partnership was agreed, adidas kit designs had already been developed for the 2010-11 season. As such, and after weighing up all the benefits of the deal, the Club decided that this exciting opportunity to be associated with the leading brand in world football was one not to be missed and the Club trusts that their supporters will feel they have made the right decision.
Q. Will Stoke City retain the solid back or return to the stripes in the future?
A. Working closely with adidas, the Club have the option to incorporate the stripes in future designs.
