German sportswear firm Adidas has said it is ending its sponsorship of English football club Chelsea six years early.
Adidas, which has sponsored Chelsea since 2006, said it had reached a mutual agreement to end the deal on 30 June 2017 instead of 2023.
Chelsea football club has been faced with a disastrous and sad season the club this year.
According to reports, Chelsea initiated the termination talks but Adidas were also happy to terminate the deal and move to ‘bigger clubs’ as Chelsea had a terrible season, one not good for the Sportswear company’s image.
Adidas has been the sponsor and sportswear supplier for Chelsea since 2006, but Chelsea will pay £40m termination fee to adidas after initiating the talks to end the deal as the club also feel they could get better money from sponsors, an irony given that they haven’t had a good season.
Chelsea signed the £30m-a-year deal in June 2013 and were surprised when the company secured a £75m-a-year deal with Manchester United 12 months later. Chelsea believe they have been one of the world’s most successful clubs and the current adidas deal did not reflect their market value.
The company said in a statement: “Adidas… wishes to expressly thank Chelsea Football Club for their always professional and successful collaboration, which has included, among other successes, the time of their UEFA Champions League title in 2012 as well as two Premier League titles.”
Its deal in 2013 with Chelsea, reported to have been worth £300m, was the biggest shirt deal in Premier League history.
However, Adidas broke its own record the following year, when it agreed to pay £750m to replace its US rival Nike as sponsor of Manchester United.
It has also taken over from Nike at Italian champions Juventus, while extending its contract with Germany’s number one team Bayern Munich.
The identity of Chelsea’s next kit manufacturer has not been revealed.
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