Follow? In the River ecosystem, this question applies to two relationships that make up the sensitive area of the agenda and that share the expiration date of the last day of the year: that of Marcelo gallardo as a coach and adidas la as historical technical sponsor. Although this last link, unlike what happens with the Doll, does not depend on an introspective analysis but on an economic bid that it was reactivated with everything from the official offer of one of the protagonists: Puma.
The firm of the feline presented to the leadership a formal proposal to raise the annual fee by US $ 1.8 million compared to what its competitor currently pays and thus become the ninth seal to dress River (Olimpia, Topper, Sportlandia, Textil Sport, Realco, Saint Margaret and Gath & Chaves were also there).
It is an offer that exceeds by around 30% the basic canon set with the brand of the three strips for 2021 -to this is added the income from royalties, about 12% of the sales of the year- and that not only does it validate the interest that had been around for a long time, but it also definitively inaugurates the dispute.
The most representative adidas shirts in River.
In the meetings that Jorge Brito, the ruling party candidate for the December elections, held from June 30 with the executives of the different companies that were interested in dressing River (until the middle of the year, adidas had the priority to bid), Puma always had a huge predisposition to move the board.
However, even though his plan is to add his ABC1 team to CARP – he is a sponsor of AC Milan, Manchester City, Borussia Dortmund and the Italian national team; In Argentina, it is a supplier to Independiente – it does not seem easy for it to achieve its mission. And for various reasons.
One is the economic one: adidas has, by contract, the possibility of matching any offer before November 1 and even proposing a higher amount until December 31 in order to secure the extension with River. In the signing of the three strips, they are optimistic in maintaining their relationship with the Núñez club: they are betting to compensate the figure proposed by the competition by adjusting, for example, the royalty percentages.
Secondly, adidas also has an infrastructure that translates into a large local and international production, distribution and marketing capacity., something that differentiates it from its main competitors when supplying a giant like River. That is why he also hopes to sustain a marriage that dates back to 1982 and which is the brand’s third longest relationship after the one he has with the German national team and with Bayern.
How Puma’s offer changes the scene
The current design of River’s shirt.
However, Puma’s irruption raises the bar for the other German firm. In the talk that the top representatives of the company had with the leaders at the beginning of September to express their intention to renew the contract, the figures that were handled were not very different from the current ones. That is why River’s plan was, until that moment, agree to an increase in bonuses for sporting objectives and an increase in sales profits. But now the scene has changed.
And then, the current supplier will have to readjust his proposal if he wants to remain united to River, reviewing the amounts that today are 20% below those you receive Boca. An agreement that had somewhat strained relations with Núñez and that generated some resentment among the fans, but that has – and will have, if the renewal prospers – a point that levels the scenarios: the contract with CARP will be signed with a free dollar tied to the while the agreement with the CABJ is capped at close to $ 70.
The competition generates expectation, since for a large part of the adidas fans it represents history: it was in the four Liberators, in the Intercontinental, in Ramón’s three-time championship, in the Napoleon cycle. Taking the three strips off the sleeves would imply a historic divorce.
But Puma lurks. And sparks will marry
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