With the play-offs now completed, the following PUMA contracted National Teams are confirmed for participation in next year’s major sporting event:

• Czech Republic
• Ghana
• Iran
• Italy
• Ivory Coast
• Paraguay
• Poland
• Saudi Arabia
• Switzerland
• Togo
• Tunisia

“This is a tremendous statement for PUMA and once again underlines our commitment to football with the aim of further strengthening PUMA as one of the leading football brands,” said Jochen Zeitz, CEO & Chairman of PUMA, and continued: “We take great pride in being the brand with most national teams at next year’s event and would like to congratulate all eleven Federations for their wonderful achievement as well as those PUMA associated Federations that battled hard throughout the qualification.”

All associated PUMA National Teams will be endorsing the brand’s new v1.06 statement product concept come 2006. The v1.06 statement product concept will be launched at the African Cup of Nations where PUMA again is the dominating brand with six national teams confirmed including: Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Togo and titleholders Tunisia.

Three of the African teams above, i.e. Ghana, Ivory Coast, Togo, make their debut at the World Cupä with Tunisia making their fourth appearance. For Saudi Arabia this has been the fourth successive successful qualification campaign with Iran bound to appear for the third time. For Paraguay and Poland, the upcoming finals represent their seventh appearance. Czech Republic and Switzerland will both be making the trip for the eighth time with Italy further enhancing their impressive record of sixteen appearances in total.