Chelsea have signed an astonishing new kit deal worth £900million over 15 seasons. The £60m-a-year tie-up with Nike, which starts next season, is worth double the annual amount paid by their current kit supplier adidas. Nike officially announced their new shirt supply agreement with Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich-owned Chelsea on Thursday. Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia, Abramovich’s closest aide, who played a major role in the negotiations, said:
‘This is an incredibly exciting and important deal. Like Chelsea, Nike is known around the world for its excellence and innovation and we look forward to working together in what is sure to be a successful partnership.’
The only larger football clothing supply contracts are Barcelona’s deal with Nike and Adidas’s contract with Real Madrid, both signed in the summer and reportedly each worth £100m over 10 years.
The annual price Nike are paying Chelsea is also less than the £75m-a-year rival Adidas’s Manchester United contract costs them. But that is again a mere 10-year partnership compared with the ground-breaking length of the Chelsea tie-up until 2032.
No wonder Chelsea paid £40m to exit their current adidas contract, worth £30m-a-year, six years early. The mega-money Nike arrangement comes into effect from the start of next season.