FC Barcelona held a general assembly with all the club members today to secure the approval for the club’s new contract with Nike.
The new deal, which will run until 2038, is seen as the ‘best contract in history’ by club president Joan Laporta that will help the Catalans in the short and the long run.
Details of the Nike contract
Without divulging the exact finances of the deal, Barcelona provided details of their new agreement with Nike, which has become the club’s main sponsor during the assembly.
The new contract eliminates penalties for not winning titles, includes a signing bonus, and sees a considerable increase in the sponsorship deal.
Nike will now hold exclusive rights as the club’s official sportswear provider, while Barcelona will be able to sell its own branded clothing.
Barcelona’s treasurer, Ferran Olive, outlined the main points of the agreement without disclosing specific figures due to confidentiality.
He highlighted that the new deal significantly increases the club’s revenue, allows Barcelona to sell its own clothing lines and accessories, and gives the club greater control over retail sales, international expansion, and e-commerce.
The most notable change is that the sponsorship deal is practically doubled. In addition, there is a signing bonus and performance bonuses based on sporting achievements. While not confirmed, the deal is expected to be worth €1.7 billion until 2038.
Barcelona have secured a historic deal with Nike. (Photo by JOSEP LAGO/AFP via Getty Images)
One important detail is the removal of financial penalties tied to sporting performance. Furthermore, for the first time, both the men’s and women’s football teams will have equal bonus structures for winning titles, something that was not included in the previous deal.
The agreement will also be reassessed in the coming years.
One of the major innovations is that Nike will retain exclusive rights for official sportswear, but other business opportunities will be made available through BLM for the production of Barcelona’s own clothing or luxury items.
Olive stated that BLM could generate around €200 million in the 2025-26 season.
Barcelona will also regain full control of retail sales and the international expansion of stores. The club will also manage its e-commerce operations, which involve online sales.
According to Olive, “This agreement goes beyond generating significantly higher revenue than we had before, as it will allow us to earn much more in areas of business where we did not previously have control.
“Nike understood this, and we have signed a fantastic commercial agreement between both parties.”
Olive further explained how negotiations went down between the two parties saying:
“We went to the market and received an offer from a competitor that valued us the way we believed we should be. Nike had the option to match it, and we began positive negotiations to secure the best contract in history.
“We achieved an amount of money that we had never seen before, as well as freeing up business opportunities that we did not have before.”
Source: SPORT