With this licensing deal, PUMA continues its successful range of bodywear, bringing together the PUMA characteristic elements of function and stylish design.

“Dobotex is a true product expert and well respected company in its field of activity and we are very excited to extend the license agreement in geographical spread and product development,” said Jochen Zeitz, Chairman and CEO of PUMA.

“We are very pleased with the extension of our long-term licensing agreement with PUMA,” Dobotex Managing Director Jeroen van Dooren said. “We are looking forward to continue our extremely successful co-operation with such a strong brand.”

PUMA and Dobotex have been in a successful partnership since 1997 with Dobotex producing PUMA socks. Under this agreement, PUMA socks have become the market leader in the sports socks category in Europe in recent years.

Currently, PUMA has also granted licenses for the manufacture of personal care products, glasses and sunglasses, and watches.

Highlights Q2

• Consolidated sales increase more than 11% currency-adjusted
• Gross profit margin remains above 52%
• EBIT up 2% to € 62 million
• EPS at € 2.98 versus € 2.82

Highlights First Half-Year

• Global brand sales at € 1.4 billion
• Consolidated sales up almost 9% currency-adjusted
• Gross profit margin at 53%
• EBIT at € 188 million
• EPS at € 8.74 compared to € 8.84

Outlook 2008

• Orders up almost 9% currency neutral to € 1,072 million
• Management confirms a single-digit sales increase on a currency neutral basis

Jochen Zeitz, CEO: ”PUMA’s performance in the second quarter improved at a steady pace, ahead of the Q1 progression. Thanks to our scheduled brand investments, consolidated sales were up 11% in the quarter, driven by a solid growth in all regions and categories. I remain confident in PUMA’s ability to achieve another year of top-line growth despite an ongoing difficult global consumer environment.”

Sales and Earnings Development

Global brand sales at € 1.4 billion in first half

PUMA’s brand sales, which include consolidated sales and license sales, reached € 628.9 million during Q2, a currency-adjusted increase of 5.4% or 1.1% in Euro terms.

During the first six months, brand sales rose 2.7% currency-adjusted, reaching € 1,370.0 million versus € 1,384.0 million last year. Footwear sales slightly declined 1.3% to € 735.7 million. Apparel improved by 1.5% to € 472.9 million and Accessories grew strongly by 32.2% to € 161.5 million.

Licensed business

Due to the take-back of the former license market Korea, the licensed business decreased in Q2 by 33.2% currency-adjusted to € 52.1 million and by 34.6% to € 119.9 million after six months.

Based on the licensed sales, the company realized a royalty and commission income of € 6.4 million in Q2 versus € 8.8 million in the prior year’s quarter and € 13.4 million versus € 18.5 million year-to-date.

Consolidated sales up almost 9% after six months

In the second quarter, consolidated sales grew 11.2% currency-adjusted, or 6.3% in Euro terms to € 576.8 million. This shows an improvement as compared to Q1 this year, despite a tough comp basis due to last year’s early shipments. On a currency neutral basis, Footwear was up 7.0% to € 325.1 million, Apparel improved by 14.6% to € 206.3 million and Accessories by a strong 30.3% to € 45.4 million.

Sales in the first six months were up 8.7% currency-adjusted to € 1,250.1 million. In segments, Footwear increased 2.8% to € 719.4 million, Apparel 16.6% to € 438.1 million and Accessories 22.9% to € 92.7 million.

Gross profit margin at 53% in H1

The gross profit margin further improved by 30 basis points to 52.5% in Q2. After six months, gross profit margin was up to 53.0%, an increase of 80 basis points. In the first half, Footwear margin was up from 52.1% to 53.4% and the Apparel margins increased from 52.1% to 52.5%. Accessories reported a margin of 52.1% versus 53.8% last year.

SG&A

Total SG&A expenses increased in Q2 by 5.7% to € 233.1 million and by 7.7% to € 460.9 million during the first half. As a percentage of sales, the cost ratio decreased from 40.6% to 40.4% in Q2 and increased from 35.7% to 36.9% in H1. The increase in cost ratio is due to continuous investments into the brand according to budget.

For the first half, marketing/retail expenses were up by 19.5% to € 247.9 million as planned. Product development and design expenses were down by 13.4% to € 24.8 million or to 2.0% of sales. Other selling, general and administrative expenses were down 1.9% to € 188.3 million or from 16.0% to 15.1% of sales.

EBIT at € 188 million in H1

In Q2, EBIT was up by 2.1% to € 62.3 million, showing a clear improvement versus the first quarter. After six months, EBIT reached € 188.1 million compared to € 195.9 million last year. The EBIT margin was 10.8% versus 11.2% and 15.0% versus 16.3% respectively. The tax ratio was calculated at 28.5% versus 28.7% during the six month period.

Net earnings/Earnings per share

Net earnings increased by 0.9% to € 45.6 million in Q2. In the first half net earnings were down by 4.3% to € 135.7 million. The net return amounts to 7.9% versus 8.3% and 10.9% versus 11.8% respectively.

Earnings per share in Q2 were up 5.7% from € 2.82 to € 2.98. Year-to-date earnings per share were € 8.74 compared to € 8.84. Diluted earnings per share were calculated at € 2.98 compared with € 2.81 and € 8.74 versus € 8.82 respectively.

Net Assets and Financial Position

Equity ratio at 61%

As of June 30, 2008, total assets decreased by 2.7% to € 1,780.8 million and the equity ratio reached strong 60.7% after 60.3% in the previous year.

Working capital

Inventories grew 7.8% to € 419.5 million and receivables were up 4.4%, reaching € 473.6 million. Total working capital at the end of June totaled € 552.1 million versus € 516.4 million last year, an increase of 6.9%.

Capex/Cashflow For Capex, the company spent € 50.6 million versus € 30.8 million last year. The higher investments are mainly related to payment on accounts. In addition, € 19.7 million were financed for acquisitions compared to € 4.9 million.
Free Cashflow excluding acquisitions amounted to € -23.6 million versus € 69.4 million last year.

Cash position Total cash end of June stood at € 288.2 million versus € 443.1 million last year. Bank debts were up from € 59.8 million to € 65.6 million. As a result, the net cash position decreased from € 383.3 million to € 222.6 million year-over-year mainly due to the investments in share buy-backs.

Own Shares

PUMA purchased another 125,000 of its own shares during Q2. As of June, 700,000 shares were held as treasury stock in the balance sheet, accounting for 4.4% of total share capital, a total investment of € 171.4 million.

Regional Development

Sales in the EMEA region reached € 299.6 million in Q2, a currency-adjusted increase of 7.6%. Year-to-date, sales increased by 8.8% to € 690.7 million. The region now represents 55.3% of consolidated sales. Gross profit margin increased 60 basis points to 54.5%. Orders on hand were up 3.5% to € 576.2 million.

Q2 sales in the Americas were up 13.9% currency-adjusted reaching € 146.7 million. First half sales increased currency-adjusted 3.2% and were € 295.5 million. The region now accounts for 23.6% of consolidated sales. The gross profit margin was at 48.9% compared to 49.6% last year. The order volume was up by 14.7% to € 246.2 million. Sales in the US-market were down only 0.9% in Q2 and 8.2% after six months. Sales development improved versus Q1 2008 and outperformed the trend in the order books. Orders for the US end of June improved versus end of March, being now at $ 179.8 million or 14.8% below last year.

In Q2, the Asia/Pacific region increased sales currency-adjusted by 17.0% to € 130.5 million and 15.1% after six months reaching € 263.9 million. The total region accounts for 21.1% of sales. The gross profit margin was strongly up by 240 basis points and reached 53.6%. Orders on hand end of June were up 15.8% and totaled € 249.1 million.

Outlook 2008

Orders up almost 9% currency-adjusted

Total orders on hand as of June increased 8.6% currency-adjusted and totaled € 1,071.5 million, representing a growth of 3.9% in reporting terms.

In terms of product segments, Footwear orders were up by 9.3% to € 638.4 million. Apparel orders increased 7.0% to € 372.1 million and Accessories 11.5% to € 61.0 million.

Management confirms a single-digit sales increase on a currency neutral basis

Management reaffirms a currency-adjusted single-digit sales growth for the fiscal year 2008 despite a continued difficult consumer environment.

PUMA will continue with its marketing investments as planned in order to explore the long-term growth potential. The brand investments could affect 2008’s EBIT margin. In a currently volatile market environment it remains difficult to outline the final impact on profitability.

Bolt is the first man in 24 years to win an Olympic sprint double while the Jamaican team finished third in the nation medal table for track and field with six gold, three silver and two bronze medals.

“We were again able to impressively demonstrate PUMA’s undoubted credibility and expertise in world-class sports at the 2008 Beijing Olympics,” said Chairman and CEO Jochen Zeitz. “With our PUMA athletes and primarily Usain Bolt’s world records in the sprints, we once again set new standards and made sports history, strengthening and expanding our position as one of the leading running brands.”

Cameroonian triple jumper Francoise Mbango and javelin thrower Andreas Thorkildsen from Norway won Olympic titles wearing PUMA Runway apparel.

Bolt, Mbango and Thorkildsen join the group of brilliant PUMA track and field athletes who enjoyed golden moments in Olympic history, such as for example Armin Hary (100m / 1960), Tommie Smith (200m / 1968) and Linford Christie (100m / 1992).

Bolt worked with PUMA to develop the optimum running shoe. Running both the 100m and 200m, he needed a versatile shoe that provided support for power, as well as firmness to hold his foot in place around the turn. Following this collaborative process, the complete Theseus II was born. PUMA produced a gold version of the shoe for Beijing, which helped power him through the greatest sprints of his life so far.

The Olympics also provided the ultimate stage to showcase PUMA’s Runway Collection of clothing and apparel which was inspired by the spirit of the Games and those athletes who came to symbolize it. PUMA’s world class competitors looked the part on and off the track in lifestyle offerings with a sporting edge and performance products provide them with PUMA’s unique offering of fashion and technology.

In September 2007, PUMA announced a long-term partnership with the British non-profit organization Peace One Day at Peace One Day’s gala hosted at London’s Royal Albert Hall. PUMA’s commitment was based on the organizations’ shared values such as inclusiveness, leadership, passion, and willingness to push boundaries. Filmmaker, Jeremy Gilley began Peace One Day (POD) as a film project to establish an annual day of global ceasefire and non-violence. In 2001 Peace One Day’s efforts were rewarded when the United Nations unanimously adopted the first-ever day of global ceasefire and non-violence on September 21st annually – Peace Day.

“We support the aim of Peace One Day and want to make a contribution to the generation of global peace on one day,” said Jochen Zeitz, PUMA CEO and Chairman, “We are delighted to be a strong and long-term partner of this exemplary initiative.”

To help raise visibility and awareness of Peace Day, PUMA launched the PUMA Peace One Day Football Collection, which was unveiled at the African Cup of Nations in January 2008. PUMA’s established relationships with its African football teams ensured this exciting football collection was seen on some of Africa’s leading players throughout the tournament. The collection consists of specifically designed footballs and accessory items, which have been available in PUMA retail stores world wide since May 2008. A portion of the profits generated by the collection will be donated to POD. PUMA’s long-term goal is to source all products related to this collection in Africa.

The first ‘ONE DAY ONE GOAL’ match was also initiated during the January 2008 activities in Ghana. Through this collaborative initiative, PUMA and Peace One Day have asked people around the world to play football on September 21st, with each match celebrating cooperation, unity and the power of football to bring people together in peace. The aim of the ‘ONE DAY ONE GOAL’ initiative is to encourage people to play football all over the world, whether in major stadiums, local pitches, in the streets, on the beach, in the office, at home – it doesn’t matter. Over 150 matches are expected to take place in countries across the globe in honor of the Day, many supported by PUMA sponsored club teams and top talent.

As a direct result of Peace One Day’s campaign in 2007, parties in Afghanistan recognized Peace Day resulting in 1.4 million Afghanistan children being vaccinated against polio. Last year, 100 million people in 200 countries were engaged in Peace Day activities and in 14 of those countries, efforts were targeted towards providing life-saving activities and medical services on the Day. PUMA has worked alongside Peace One Day since 2007 and has developed a Peace One Day collection of products available in stores in September to benefit the non-profit organization.

For more information on PEACE ONE DAY, visit www.peaceoneday.org and for global stockist information, please visit our websitewww.puma.com

The early extension of the agreement, which was initiated in July 2002, underpins PUMA’s successful cooperation with VfB Stuttgart. By being crowned champion of the German premier league Bundesliga in 2006/2007, the team celebrated one of its greatest successes. Internationally, VfB Stuttgart made headlines with Champions League and UEFA Cup matches and set standards in innovative marketing off the pitch.

Jochen Zeitz, Chairman and CEO of PUMA AG: „VfB Stuttgart is one of the best teams in the German premier league. It is not only associated with accomplishments in sports but also with lifestyle and innovative marketing. We are happy to continue this successful partnership in the long-term which will not only strengthen but also expand our position as one of the leading football brands“.

Erwin Staudt, President of VfB Stuttgart: „We are happy about PUMA’s decision to convey their message together with VfB Stuttgart. PUMA is an innovative company and by now one of the most respected players in the market. The agreement extension underpins the effective cooperation between PUMA and VfB Stuttgart.”

Highlights Q3

• Consolidated sales up more than 9% currency adjusted reaching € 713 million
• Gross profit margin remains on a high level at 53.6%
• EBIT reached € 125 million, up versus last yearEPS increase 4.5% from € 5.56 to € 5.81

Highlights January – September

• Global brand sales above € 2.1 billion
• Consolidated sales up almost 9% currency adjusted
• Gross profit margin above 53%
• EBIT at € 313 million versus € 320 million last year
• EPS at € 14.55 compared to € 14.40

Outlook 2008

• Orders increase 5% to € 1,163 million
• Management raises full-year sales guidance

Jochen Zeitz, CEO: ” Despite the very challenging economic situation and sluggish retail environment, PUMA was able to post another quarter of sales growth. Due to the year to date performance and our order books, we raise our sales guidance for our full-year outlook from a single-digit to a mid to high single-digit currency adjusted sales growth.”

Sales and Earnings Development

Global brand sales

PUMA’s brand sales, which include consolidated sales and license sales, reached € 778.6 million during Q3, thus a currency adjusted increase of 5.9% or 3.3% in Euro terms.

During the nine month period ending September, global brand sales increased currency adjusted 3.8% to € 2,148.6 million. Footwear sales increased 2.4% to € 1,158.1 million and Accessories 28.2% to € 252.6 million. Apparel sales decreased 0.4% to € 737.9 million.

Consolidated sales up 9% currency adjusted

Consolidated sales in Q3 grew 9.2% currency adjusted to € 712.7 million.

By segments, Footwear increased 13.1% to € 412.8 million, Apparel 1.8% to € 245.3 million and Accessories 16.7% to € 54.6 million.

Sales after nine months were up 8.8% currency adjusted to € 1,962.9 million. Footwear improved 6.3% to € 1,132.2 million, Apparel 10.8% to € 683.4 million and Accessories 20.5% to € 147.3 million.

Gross profit margin remains at a high level

In Q3, the gross profit margin increased another 60 basis points reaching 53.6%. After nine months, the gross profit margin remained on a high level at 53.2%. Footwear margin increased from 52.3% to 53.1% and Apparel margin from 52.5% to 53.3%. Accessories reported 53.3% versus 53.9% last year.

SG&A

Total SG&A expenses increased in Q3 by 9.5% to € 249.7 million and by 8.3% to € 710.6 million after nine months. As a percentage of sales, the cost ratio increased from 34.0% to 35.0% during Q3 and from 35.1% to 36.2% after nine months as expected. The higher cost ratio is due to the scheduled brand investments in marketing and retail.

For the nine month period, marketing/retail expenses increased 17.9% and accounted for € 371.1 million, representing a percentage of sales increase from 16.8% to 18.9%. Product development and design expenses were down 12.7% to € 37.6 million or from 2.3% to 1.9% of sales. Other selling, general and administrative expenses were up only 1.2% to € 301.9 million, which reflects a decline from 16.0% to 15.4% as a percentage of sales.

EBIT

In Q3, EBIT increased by 1.0% to € 125.0 million. Due to the aforementioned brand investments, EBIT for the nine months period reported € 313.2 million compared to € 319.7 million. Nevertheless, a strong EBIT margin of 17.5% (LY: 18.5%) and 16.0% (LY: 17.1%) respectively was achieved.

The tax ratio was calculated at 29.0% versus 29.5% in the quarter and 28.7% versus 29.0% in the nine month period.

Net earnings/Earnings per share

Net earnings in Q3 were on last year’s level and totaled € 89.0 million. Due to the brand investments, net earnings were down by 2.7% to € 224.7 million year-to-date. Net return reached 12.5% versus 13.3% and 11.4% versus 12.3% respectively.

Based on average outstanding shares, earnings per share were up 4.5% from € 5.56 to € 5.81 in Q3. Year-to-date earnings per share improved from € 14.40 to € 14.55.

Net Assets and Financial Position

Equity ratio above 62%

Total assets were down by 2.5% to € 1,906.6 million as of September 30, 2008 compared to September in the previous year. The equity ratio further strengthened from 60.0% to 62.3%.

Working Capital

Inventories grew 17.3% to € 432.0 million and include the new consolidation in Korea. Receivables were up 6.1%, reaching € 532.5 million and in line with top-line growth over the last months. Total working capital at the end of September increased 19.4% and totaled € 599.6 million, mainly due to the new consolidation and low liabilities at balance sheet date. On a like-for-like basis, working capital as percent of sales was up only slightly versus last year.

Capex/Cashflow

Total Capex for the nine months period was € 79.1 million compared to € 56.6 million last year. The higher investments are according to plan and related to payment on accounts. In addition, € 24.9 million versus € 4.9 million were financed for acquisition cost.

Free Cashflow (before acquisitions) totaled € 17.2 million versus € 154.3 million last year.

Cash position

Total cash end of September stood at € 297.3 million versus € 532.5 million last year. Bank debts were down from € 69.3 million to € 61.1 million. As a result, the net cash position decreased from € 463.2 million to € 236.2 million year-over-year mainly due to the investments in share buy-backs.

Own Shares

PUMA continued its share buy-back program and purchased another 150,000 of its own shares during Q3. As of September, 850,000 shares were held as treasury stock in the balance sheet, accounting for 5.3% of total share capital, a total investment of € 202.8 million. The shares were purchased during the period beginning November 2007 until September 2008.

Regional Development

Faced with a continued tough consumer environment, the EMEA region reported a solid growth of 4.2% currency adjusted in the quarter, reaching € 388.1 million. Year-to-date, sales increased 7.1% and totalled € 1,078.8 million. The region now accounts for 55.0% of consolidated sales. Gross profit margin showed another improvement and increased from 54.5% to 55.2%. The order book end of September was up 1.1% to € 578.4 million, whereby last years order book was strongly impacted by orders related to the 2008 sport events.

Q3 sales in the Americas were up strong 18.7% currency adjusted reaching € 184.7 million. During the nine months period, sales increased 8.6% currency adjusted to € 480.2 million. The region now accounts for 24.5% of consolidated sales. The gross profit margin was at 48.9% compared to 49.7% last year which was due to a higher distribution business in Latin America. The order volume end of September was up by favorable 20.5% to € 282.4 million.

Sales in theUSoutperformed the order books reported end of June once again and were slightly up in Q3. Sales through nine months were down only 5.4%. Orders end of September turned around and show continuing positive signs, being now up 9.1% to $ 204.7 million.

In the Asia/Pacific region, sales improved 11.9% currency adjusted to € 139.9 million in Q3 and by 14.0% to € 403.9 million year-to-date. The total region accounts for 20.6% of sales. The gross profit margin improved from 50.7% to 53.1%, mainly due to the consolidation of Korean market. Orders on hand were down 0.7% currency adjusted but were up 5.8% in Euro terms and totaled € 302.5 million.

Outlook 2008

Orders up 5%

Total orders as of September increased currency adjusted 4.7% totaling € 1,163.3 million. In Euro currency, orders were up by 5.3%. The orders are mainly for deliveries scheduled for Q4 2008 as well as Q1 2009.

In terms of product segments, Footwear orders are up currency adjusted by 6.8% to € 703.5 million, Apparel by 0.6% to € 393.1 million and Accessories by 8.4% to € 66.7 million.

Management raises full-year sales guidance

Given the results achieved so far this year as well as the order book for Q4, management raises its sales guidance for the full-year outlook from a single-digit to a mid to high single-digit currency adjusted growth.

As already announced, PUMA will continue with its brand investments as planned in order to explore the long-term growth potential.

“We are pleased that we can support this initiative with PUMA footballs sporting the fair trade mark,“ said Horst Widmann, Vice President of PUMA. “The football games will bring young people together in a peaceful way and will help curtail youth violence. At the same time, we further improved the working conditions in our supplier’s factory in Pakistan.”

Horst Widmann handed over the fair trade ball to the President of missio in Munich, Pater Eric Englert (osa), who said: “I am sure the young football players will be very delighted about the ball. The passion for football truly connects people. Pastoral care, educational programmes and sports all contribute to social integration of unprivileged young people in South Africa.”

PUMA has carried out audits at its suppliers’ factories for more than ten years, monitoring strict adherence to its Code of Conduct. This guarantees that the manufacturers comply with criteria such as respecting human rights, freedom of association, prohibition of child labour as well as the payment of minimum wages. The PUMA auditors also monitor the employees’ working hours, the overtime accrued, the contractual rates of pay, pay rolls, employment contracts, health and safety standards in the workplace as well as the appropriate disposal of waste.

The independent fair trade certification mark guarantees in addition that the PUMA manufacturer in Pakistan receives a premium of 10 percent of the ball’s purchasing price, which the firm has to invest – after a democratic vote among the factory’s management, workers and employees – into social, economic or ecological development projects on the premises.

The PUMA football was publicly launched on November 17, 2008 at the Bavarian Ministry of Education in Munich during the presentation of the initiative “Club der guten Hoffnung”. The event was attended by representatives of the different charity organisations, Secretary of State for Education Dr. Marcel Huber, PUMA Vice President Horst Widmann and other corporate representatives, politicians and sportsmen.

PUMA also presented the ball at its annual stakeholder meeting which took place at the Banz Monastery at the same time. PUMA employees discussed sustainability, sourcing, environmental and social issues with the President of the Fair Labor Association, Auret van Heerden, the author of the book „The China Price: The true cost of Chinese competitive advantage, Alexandra Harney as well as with representatives from Oxfam, Misereror, Fair Wear Foundation, Carbon Disclosure Project and the Global Reporting Initiative.

The two-day meeting of PUMA employees with stakeholders from different organisations, that have different goals, has led to many productive results in the past. Numerous initiatives emerged from the open and transparent dialogues and discussions and made an impact on PUMA’s sustainability strategy.

“The long-term extension of our partnership with the Egyptian Football Association underlines PUMA’s commitment to support African football”, said Jochen Zeitz, Chairman and CEO of PUMA. “We are the leading football supplier on the African continent with 11 national teams under contract as Africa becomes the center of attention in the world of football with the 2010 African Cup of Nations in Angola leading up to the 2010 World Cup™ in South Africa.”

“We are delighted to continue our partnership with PUMA and are grateful for the excellent cooperation in the past years,” said Samir Zaher, President of the Egyptian Football Association. “We are proud to be partners with such a global brand that has made a commitment to football in both Egypt and the African continent as a whole.”

The sixth time and reigning African Champions (1957, 1959, 1986, 2006 and 2008) qualified twice for the World Cup™ in 1934 as well as 1990 and will face Rwanda, Algeria and Zambia in the final stages of the qualification to the 2010 tournament. In the first qualification game – taking place on March 28th 2009 – they will play against the team of Zambia.

“PUMA has built up a strong momentum in women’s soccer over the past 10 years collaborating closely with pioneering partners that have redefined the game on a global and local stage. Today, we are proud to be one of the founding partners of Women’s Professional Soccer in what promises to be a new pioneering chapter for women’s soccer,” said PUMA Chairman & CEO Jochen Zeitz. “The WPS partnership provides PUMA with a perfect platform to reinforce the brand’s positioning as the most desirable sportlifestyle brand in the world as well as underline our continued commitment to women’s sports.”

With the WPS partnership, PUMA further underlines its commitment to women’s soccer where it already has long-term partnerships with the likes of two-time FIFA™ World Player of the Year Marta da Silva of Brazil, who was drafted by the WPS Los Angeles Sol, U.S. National Team star Leslie Osborne, who will be playing for WPS in the Bay Area, and several Club teams in Europe including Swedish champion’s Umea IK, UEFA Women’s Cup Champions in 2003 and 2004.

“To have PUMA, the world’s leading sportlifestyle brand, as a founding partner in Women’s Professional Soccer is a great endorsement for our league,” said Commissioner Tonya Antonucci. “We are proud to have PUMA’s commitment to support, supply and grow the league and we recognize the creative, stylish and unique ways PUMA will promote WPS and women’s soccer on the whole.”

PUMA will have a presence in each market and stadiums for WPS games, as well as the WPS All-Star Game, WPS playoffs and WPS Championship game. PUMA and WPS have agreed to cross-promotional marketing opportunities via national print media, online media and television. This agreement also marks PUMA as an official licensee of the WPS for items including on field and sportlifestyle apparel, footwear and a wide variety of accessories.

PUMA is a leader in the game of soccer with a European portfolio of five National Teams, including current FIFA World Cup™ holders Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Bulgaria and Czech Republic. In addition to being the official supplier to these European teams, PUMA has a long standing relationship with 11 African soccer Federations including the current CAF African Cup of Nations™ holders, Egypt, Ghana, Cameroon, Angola, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal, Tunisia and Namibia. In the U.S., PUMA has worked with all-star Major League Soccer athletes such as Matt Reis, Brian Ching and Dwayne De Rosario.

“We are thrilled and proud of PUMA’s Volvo Ocean Race debut success and wish to congratulate the PUMA Ocean Racing Crew on fighting for an excellent second place in a sensational race”, said Jochen Zeitz, PUMA Chairman and CEO. “PUMA’s participation in the Volvo Ocean Race was the most innovative marketing campaign the company has ever launched and proved to be an extremely successful starting signal for our sailing category with the investment having been paid more than off. Sales of PUMA´s Volvo Ocean Race merchandising collection exceeded our expectations.”

Skipper Ken Read commented: “This race has been an amazing journey for PUMA Ocean Racing. It seems like a lifetime ago since we first announced PUMA’s entry in the Volvo Ocean Race in March 2007 and here we are today, having just sailed over 50,000 miles, visited 10 countries and been awarded the trophy for second place in the race. It’s been an absolute dream. But it’s not just been a yacht race. Any successful business like this is all about the people. And we have the best people I have ever been associated with in sailing. Through the PUMA Ocean Racing team and the extensive activity associated with the program around the world, PUMA has brought hundreds of thousands of new fans to the sport of sailing, and I maintain that the sport is now changed forever.”

Over 5 million people visited the Volvo Ocean Race stopover villages and seen PUMA’s il mostro, PUMA City and our local market initiatives. Over 44,000 customers and PUMA employees were taken for a sailing tour on a PUMA yacht either before the start or in one of the stopover ports of the race.

PUMA’s eye-catching sailing yacht “il mostro”, the innovative PUMA Sailing Collections, the innovative marketing initiatives launched at the numerous stop-over ports, PUMA City and the successful performance of the PUMA Ocean Racing Crew generated extensive media coverage that more than offset PUMA’s investment in the Volvo Ocean Race. The value of the media coverage on PUMA’s entry in the Volvo Ocean Race was estimated to exceed USD 40 million.

PUMA used the 11 port destinations of the Race to activate complex onshore marketing strategies. PUMA used every single race location – Alicante, Cape Town, Cochin in India, Singapore, Qingdao in China, Rio de Janeiro, Boston, Galway in Ireland, Marstrand in Sweden, Stockholm and finally St. Petersburg – to not only position PUMA as a Sailing brand, but to convey PUMA’s overall brand message, creating visibility for other PUMA categories through media and star-studded events. Such activities have set a new marketing benchmark in the growing sport of sailing. At the same time, while the sport of sailing is often perceived to be very exclusive, PUMA aimed to break down this misconception. The PUMA Ocean Racing campaign has successfully begun to broaden the sports’ audiences, with an inclusive, fun outlook on the sport.

The Volvo Ocean Race was the perfect platform to launch the PUMA Sailing performance and lifestyle collections and reach new target consumers. PUMA launched a full range of nautical inspired apparel, footwear and accessories, from offshore sailing gear to onshore lifestyle fashion. The PUMA Sailing Performance collection was developed and tested by the PUMA Ocean Racing team itself, and was worn by the crew throughout the entire race. Every single item worn by the PUMA Ocean Racing team from apparel to footwear and accessories, worn both on and off the water and in extreme conditions, was made by PUMA. PUMA delivered an impressive testament of its expertise and know-how in the new sailing category which was built up in no time to compete at the highest level in every respect. The first PUMA Sailing Lifestyle collections hit the stores at the beginning of 2008.

PUMA’s entry into sailing opened up further opportunities for entering other categories, such as the outdoor market. The Volvo Ocean Race served as a perfect test laboratory for PUMA’s outdoor products as the crew had to be equipped with apparel and footwear suitable for extreme weather conditions – from freezing cold to burning heat.

PUMA’s retail expertise manifested itself by providing a unique shopping experience in PUMA City at the stop-over ports. Retail expectations were exceeded, after sales in PUMA City on a single day in Boston topped daily sales in any PUMA store ever worldwide.

PUMA City is a mobile architecture and has accompanied our sailing crew during parts of the Race, being shipped to and assembled at the stop-over ports in Alicante and Boston to host celebrations, press events, entertainment and in-port race viewing. A unique retail space offered a selection of the PUMA Sailing, Motorsport, Urban Mobility and PUMA Archives apparel, footwear and accessories as well as the entire Volvo Ocean Race merchandise collection. PUMA City – that won the ‘Best Retail Space’ award by American publication Travel + Leisure – is a massive 11,000 square-foot structure made from twenty-four long steel shipping containers, each weighing in at eleven tons.

The 11-men strong crew around skipper Ken Read raced 10 legs of the race since the start in Alicante, Spain last October, and visited 10 countries in Africa, Asia, South and North America. Every leg of the race brought intense weather conditions, crazy boat speeds, navigation of dangerous seas and uncharted waters, broken equipment and even injuries onboard. They crossed the equator four times, experienced temperatures ranging between 0 and 35 degrees Celsius, consumed over 8,250,000 calories of mostly freeze-dried food, desalinated 140 litres of water per day for cooking and drinking, used 5,560 square metres of sail material to make 24 sails and over 2.5 kilometres of rope on il mostro.

“We at PUMA have already done a lot to mitigate PUMA’s negative impact on our planet,” said Jochen Zeitz, Chairman and CEO of PUMA. “Through our PUMAVision category puma.safe, we started to more accurately measure the carbon footprint of our offices worldwide, which will help us to identify areas where we can further reduce our carbon footprint. As Methane released by cows is responsible for 18% of gas emissions, PUMA is supporting the “Meat Free Monday” campaign and encourages its employees to do the same by avoiding meat consumption at least once a week on Mondays.”

Sir Paul McCartney said: “I think many of us feel helpless in the face of environmental challenges, and it can be hard to know how to sort through the advice about what we can do to make a meaningful contribution to a cleaner, more sustainable, healthier world. Having one designated meat free day a week is actually a meaningful change that everyone can make, that goes to the heart of several important political, environmental and ethical issues all at once. For instance it not only addresses pollution, but better health, the ethical treatment of animals, global hunger and community and political activism.”

“Meat Free Monday” is an initiative by Sir Paul McCartney and his daughters Stella and Mary to encourage meat-eaters to forgo carnivorous meals for one day each week. The campaign website www.supportMFM.org provides additional information on tasty and healthy alternatives, while the website www.carbonneutralbeef.com can provide additional information on what the meat industry has been doing to reduce its impact.

Under puma.safe, PUMA is bringing together all of it’s longstanding work on environmental issues and decent work in decent workplaces, and combining it with new initiatives that will drive us to cleaner, greener, safer and more sustainable systems and practices. Earlier this year PUMA supported the environmental movie “HOME” by bringing this powerful commentary on the major environmental and social issues challenging our world to as many viewers as possible. At PUMA we know that creating awareness of our environment’s emergency state is crucial and acting on that awareness through positive action is our contribution to a more responsible corporate ethic.

PUMAVision unites all PUMA initiatives that come under the heading ‘Corporate Social Responsibility’, giving them a coherent direction and framework. It comes from a vision of a world that is better than the one we know now—a world that is safer, more peaceful and more creative. The PUMAVision programs puma.safe (focusing on environmental and social issues), puma.peace (supporting global peace), and puma.creative (supporting artists and creative organizations), reflect PUMA’s commitment to social and environmental responsibility and define the partnerships and initiatives PUMA will support and pursue.