I love soccer. Better yet, I love football. I never understood American football – the fascination, the rivalry, the fact they rarely ever even use their foot. I’ve watched maybe 10 games my 27 years on this planet, but have never missed a World Cup since Les Blues won in 1998, and constantly cheer on my favorite players (and clubs) during UEFA matches. There’s a heat that runs through when I watch a match, that I don’t feel during any other sport. The passion that penetrates off everyone in the stands, even when you’re watching from the comfort of your own home, is felt throughout those 90 minutes, and sometimes after. It’s a sensation of being apart of something larger than you, with an intangible reasoning. I even had a dream to be a WAG one day. Shopping the most luxurious stores before attending a match with my new born child cheering, every time my football husband scored a goal.
But there’s a more business and competitive side of soccer that occurs both off and on the field, that surrounds ownership. Though my love will always back Adidas and there history in football, you can’t deny that Nike has made headway in their 20 years of being apart of the game.
From Bloomberg –
There are four ways to get people to notice your sports brand at a soccer match. You can get on a player’s feet, you can get on his chest, you can get on the marquee of the event or you can run ads. Nike has been eating at Adidas’s once overwhelming lead in soccer for 20 years. The companies are now roughly even and, together, about 95 percent of the global market for soccer. “Shootout: Can Nike Beat Adidas at Soccer?” will take a look at whether Adidas’ 40-year strategy — be the marquee World Cup sponsor — is still worth it or if Nike’s slow and steady build up sponsored teams, players and ads will take them over the top to become the world’s biggest soccer brand.
**CREDIT: BLOOMBERG TELEVISION**