Never out of the news for long, Balotelli wore PUMA boots on pitch for the first time last week in AC Milan’s game against Roma and again in the Milan Derby last night. The PUMA evoPOWER Stampa FG were covered in the news headlines that have defined his career to date.

Sports brand PUMA is proud to announce a new long-term partnership with the International Icon Mario Balotelli. The Italy Striker becomes the latest sporting sensation to join PUMA’s family of star players and athletes that includes Usain Bolt, Sergio Agüero, Cesc Fàbregas, Marco Reus, Radamel Falcao and Rickie Fowler.

Never out of the news for long, Balotelli wore PUMA boots on pitch for the first time last week in AC Milan’s game against Roma and again in the Milan Derby last night. The PUMA evoPOWER Stampa FG were covered in the news headlines that have defined his career to date.

Mario Balotelli is a key signing for PUMA and will become a key asset in PUMA’s brand and football communication over the coming years. PUMA’s long-standing partnership with the Italian Football Association (FIGC) is another strategic focus in which the Italian Centre Forward will play a significant role.

Speaking about the new partnership with PUMA, Mario Balotelli said: “This is a great move for me. From the early conversations I had with PUMA it was clear that they understand me, my personality and my ambition. The product and marketing plans they have developed are very exciting and I will be proud to be associated with everything I have seen. PUMA’s support for the Italian National team was another instrumental reason for me signing this contract and I am sure that the coming years will bring many good things for us all.”

Björn Gulden, CEO of PUMA, commented: “Mario Balotelli is a world class football player who will become a key ambassador for PUMA as his passion, speed, agility and power make him a perfect fit for our brand. With the FIFA World Cup in Brazil ahead of us, 2014 will be an important year for PUMA. Having Mario to complement an already strong sports-marketing portfolio, he will support our new brand mission ‘Forever Faster’ which will have a significant impact for the PUMA brand.”

Imagery and further assets can be downloaded from the PUMA Press Centre: about.puma.com/en/Newsroom

PUMA and Arsenal will work together to bring further innovation into the sports brand’s performance apparel range. Both organisations will work collaboratively on a global strategy to drive mutual growth across all football markets, achieved through PUMA’s global sales network, international tours and integrated marketing activities. Arsenal also presents PUMA with its most prominent platform to showcase performance products through its significant global fanbase, profile and reputation.

Having extended and deepened its relationship with the FIGC (Italian Football Federation), signed 2013 UEFA Champions LeagueTM finalists Borussia Dortmund and bolstered its player portfolio with Sergio Agüero, Cesc Fàbregas, Mario Balotelli, Radamel Falcao, Olivier Giroud and Yaya Touré amongst others; PUMA is defining itself as the clear number three football brand.

Bjoern Gulden, Chief Executive Officer for PUMA said: “Arsenal have been a key strategic target for PUMA for a number of years now. Through a clear commercial vision, a well-defined sports marketing strategy and a relentless enthusiasm within the PUMA organisation, we’re proud to have signed this partnership with a truly global football club. As we enter a new era in our company history, Arsenal represents a major commercial and marketing opportunity to reinforce PUMA’s credibility as a global sports brand, and we have full confidence the plans in place to activate this partnership will have a significant global impact.”

Ivan Gazidis, Chief Executive Officer at Arsenal Football Club said: “We are excited to be partnering with PUMA, a company whose football heritage and record of innovation have a strong affinity with our own. This represents another important step forward in Arsenal’s progression on and off the pitch.”

Imagery and further assets can be downloaded from the PUMA Press Centre: about.puma.com/en/Newsroom

Media Contacts:

PUMA
Tim Stedman, International PR, PUMA
+49 151 1474 3148
tim.stedman@puma.com

Arsenal
Mark Gonnella, Communications Director
+44 207 704 4010
mgonnella@arsenal.co.uk

Katie Baldwin, Senior PR Manager
+44 207 704 4010
kbaldwin@arsenal.co.uk

PUMA will remain a long-term partner of the FACR, supporting Czech football teams in all age and branch categories. The new agreement has also been extended to include beach football and futsal. On the threshold of the EURO 2016 qualifications, this renewal sends a strong and positive message to all football supporters in the Czech Republic.

Christian Voigt, Senior Head of Global Sports Marketing, PUMA International commented, “We are proud to renew our longstanding partnership with the Czech Republic Football Association. Next year, we will celebrate the 20th year of this partnership and we are delighted to be extending it for another long-term period. The FACR was one of PUMA’s first major football sponsorships in our company's modern era, and has played a role in PUMA becoming one of the most innovative and leading football brands. We look forward to building on the success we have enjoyed together for the coming years.”

Miroslav Pelta, Chair of FACR said, “The duration of this extended partnership between PUMA and the Football Association of the Czech Republic is testament to our mutual satisfaction and trust. PUMA has become a sponsor of ours with enhanced representation that now includes soccer futsal and beach football, which we see as an important step in strengthening our cooperation.”

Marek Drvota, General Manager PUMA Eastern Europe added, “The partnership with the Football Association is very important for us on the local level. I’m pleased that we can build on the almost-twenty-year successful partnership. Our company wants to support the Football Association both in successful times and in the times when things don’t go as expected, because this is what sports are about. We are a sport brand that wants to support all the sportsmen in the world. I believe we will manage to be a stable partner for the FACR for years to come.”

Along with the national team’s promising start in the qualification for the 2016 UEFA European ChampionshipTM, the extension of the long term partnership is another positive sign for the future of Austrian football. The new agreement sees PUMA providing the official playing kits for all associated ÖFB teams, including the men’s, women’s and all youth national teams. PUMA also remains to be the federation’s official partner in relation to replica kits, fanwear and other merchandise.

Christian Voigt, Senior Head of Global Sports Marketing at PUMA said, “For us this is a very special partnership, the longest standing in PUMA’s history. Over the past 40 years we have formed a relationship of trust, and one that has been consistently based on common values and aspirations. We are delighted with this extension, and wish the ÖFB great success as they look to build on their great start to the European ChampionshipTM qualification.”

ÖFB president Leo Windtner added, “We have long standing relationships with most of our partners, all of which are based on trust, mutual appreciation and the right balance between giving and taking. However, a partnership over such a long period of time is unique to us, and it shows it is profitable for either side. I am very pleased about PUMA keeping their faith with us, continuing to be a great technical partner.”

Alfred Ludwig, ÖFB General Director commented, “Working with the same technical partner for four decades is proof in itself of a highly successful partnership. PUMA have been a great partner during this period of time and we now look forward to the upcoming years and their ongoing support. We appreciate this partnership especially from a product point of view, where PUMA always perform at high standards and surprise with exciting innovations, like the ACTV technology they launched this year. These bring us great benefit.”

Through this agreement, the FIGC and PUMA will actively work together on a number of projects to grow the image, profile and commerciality of the FIGC on a global level. This will entail shared marketing investment allocated to core areas of focus within the FIGC programme including youth development, women’s football, countering racism and the internationalisation of the FIGC brand.

As PUMA continues to reassert itself as a Global Sport Brand with strong heritage in performance, the FIGC partnership is one of great strategic importance. Dating back more than ten years, PUMA first became the partner of the ‘Squadre Nazionali’ in 2003. This next era will see the partnership continue to expand and instigate greater mutual return to both organisations.

Bjørn Gulden, Chief Executive Officer for PUMA said: “Extending this long standing partnership with the FIGC is extremely important to PUMA and is another key step towards our goal to become the Fastest Sport Brand in the World. The FIGC with all its heritage and class is a major ingredient in our football portfolio and there is a clear vision amongst their new senior management that we share and are enthusiastic to support. The coming years will see a deeper commitment from PUMA to the FIGC and we see great commercial opportunity through a partnership that has continued to grow yet retains great potential.”

Carlo Tavecchio, President of the FIGC commented: “The partnership extension with PUMA represents a very important result for the FIGC. It will bring benefit us greatly both in affirming our brand at an international level and because it will see both organizations committed to developing special projects. The FIGC has defined a 360 development plan that is effective across the National A Team to the youth teams, from women’s football to social responsibility projects. In addressing these ambitious plans, PUMA will be a highly valued partner that we are proud to have with us for a long time.

The new away shirt features an Italian flag inspired sublimation print stripe that reaches all the way from the collar to the hem, with a 3D framed FIGC badge being bedded into the stripe to complete the look. The tailored blue collar adds a nice contrast to the white base colour of the shirt. Further details include the blue mesh form stripe inserts on the shoulders, and the blue PUMA logo on the chest. The official PUMA font, which is exclusively designed for the FIGC offers a finishing touch to this new shirt.

As with the official FIGC home shirt, the new away shirt features PUMA’s performance enhancing ACTV technology. The ACTV tape is placed in strategic positions on the shirt to fulfil different functions, supporting the body’s physiological performance by cooling it in hot conditions and heating it in cool weather.  PUMA’s dryCELL technology further improves the comfort as it wicks moisture away from the skin’s surface to keep the wearer dry.

Torsten Hochstetter, Global Creative Director at PUMA said, “The new Italy away kit was created with a lot of attention to detail. Strong Italian cultural influences inspire the design, there is such richness in the heritage of Italian football and we had a lot to work with.  We are proud of the end result and look forward to a big event in France next summer.  We wish the Italian team well for the remainder of their qualification.”

Carlo Tavecchio, President of the FIGC commented, “We would like to thank PUMA that will tomorrow make its debut with our National Team, and then be provided to all our youth, women’s futsal and beach soccer teams.  The national team is the sporting symbol of our country's best known and appreciated players that are celebrated across the world, and the flag in the centre of the jersey will be another means to promote the image of Italian football and the Italian system. PUMA remains a partner of great value for the FIGC."

The new Italy away shirt (with and without the ATCV technology) and a new collection of matching fan wear is now available to buy on puma.com/Italy

International Media Contacts:

PUMA
Tim Stedman, International PR, PUMA
+49 151 1474 3148
tim.stedman@puma.com      

FIGC
Paolo Corbi, Capo Ufficio Stampa FIGC
+39 335 7636050
p.corbi@figc.it

"The exact movements that make an athlete hot are converted and used to cool them down," said Charles Johnson, Global Director Innovation. "That functional dynamic informed the visual language of the jacket. That's what makes it special."

When sport activity increases, so does the body temperature. Sweat buildup and heat create a humid climate inside apparel that make it uncomfortable. Traditional performance apparel deals with this condition by using performance textiles and zippers and vents that are all static. The evoTRG Vent Jacket, on the other hand, provides temperature control with technical stretch mesh that assists in ventilation and allows for freedom of movement. In addition, windCell ensures protection against wind to minimize the loss of body temperature. The vent Thermo-R jacket demonstrated a better cooling technology in terms of skin temperature compared to the closed vent and vented control jackets. Skin temperature decreases appeared higher after 10 minutes compared to 20 minutes, and were on average 0.4°C cooler.

Our analysis of the Swiss Home jersey from Sunday's game shows that there was one batch of material, where yarns had been damaged during the production process, leading to a weakening in the final garment. This can happen, if the combination of heat, pressure and time is not properly controlled in the manufacturing process. The tight fitting ACTV jerseys are made of an elastane and polyester material mix. The defective material was used in only a limited number of Swiss home jerseys.

PUMA has checked the inventory of all jerseys of all PUMA teams and can assure that such an unfortunate incident does not happen again. PUMA's national team jerseys for the EURO 2016 are manufactured in Turkey.

The ACTV Thermo-R technology helps players to maintain an optimum body temperature through a unique phase-change material injected into the shirt’s inner athletic taping, strategically inserted in the front and back of the shirt. It has successfully been used in national and club team jerseys since March 2014 and worn during the World Cup and subsequent club season.

This was a very unfortunate incident and PUMA apologizes to the Swiss federation and their players.

The new partnership was announced at a joint press conference in Mönchengladbach by the club’s manager Stephan Schippers, Borussia Mönchengladbach sports director Max Eberl and General Manager PUMA DACH Matthias Bäumer. Referring to the historical success story from 1976 to 1992 and the new common goals, the partnership runs under the slogan “What belongs together comes together".

Borussia Mönchengladbach Manager Stephan A.C. Schippers: “The contract with PUMA is not only of strong emotional significance for us, but is also a landmark step into the future. As a world-renowned and popular sports brand, PUMA has a great level of expertise in the development of functional team sport collections and in the distribution of licensed products. We look forward to great joint campaigns, starting in the 2018/19 season.”

Max Eberl, Sports Director Borussia Monchengladbach: “Borussia’s greatest sports successes in the 1970s are strongly associated with PUMA. We are therefore very pleased to be working with PUMA once again from the 2018/19 season on and to hopefully build upon our past successes.” 

Bjørn Gulden, PUMA CEO: “We are proud to be the new partner of Borussia Monchengladbach. We have a great and successful history with the club. Gladbach plays a fast and dynamic football, which is fun to watch. Its impressive academy, great fans and the image of this traditional club make Monchengladbach the perfect match for PUMA. We look forward to this new partnership!“

Matthias Bäumer, Area General Manager PUMA DACH adds: “We are pleased that we were able to bolster our portfolio by adding one of the most traditional and successful clubs in the German Bundesliga. Our partnership with Borussia Mönchengladbach will not only strengthen our position as one of the leading football brands in Germany. It will also help us to expand our teamsport business with our trade partners. PUMA and Borussia Mönchengladbach: this partnership stands for years of success and is a story that we will continue in a creative and passionate way.“

PUMA was Gladbach’s official jersey supplier from 1976 to 1992. Already in 1967, the sports brand started to supply the team with shoes, and later with the legendary track jackets and trousers. PUMA supported Borussia during its most successful time. Together, they celebrated five German championship titles as well as one German Cup and two UEFA Cup victories during that period.

Borussia Monchengladbach is PUMA´s second German top club in addition to Borussia Dortmund. PUMA’s football portfolio is comprised of top international and long-established football clubs such as Arsenal FC, Girondins Bordeaux, Leicester City, Rangers FC, Newcastle United, VfB Stuttgart as well as several national teams. From July 1 2018, PUMA will also be the official technical supplier of Olympique de Marseille. PUMA´s football portfolio also includes some of the world´s best players, such as Antoine Griezmann, Olivier Giroud, Sergio „Kun“ Agüero, Marco Reus, Julian Weigl, Cesc Fàbregas, Mario Balotelli, Héctor Bellerín und Yaya Touré.

The Senegal National Team, will debut its new PUMA kit and training line in the upcoming FIFA window in March.  They will be seen on the world’s stage at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, which will be the second time in the history that Senegal will play a World Cup.

We are delighted to welcome Senegal back to the PUMA Family again. They are a great team with many promising talents who stood out during the qualification for the World Cup. With PUMA’s long history in African football and the characteristics of the Lions of Teranga with their style of play and joyfulness, it is a perfect fit to PUMA and our Forever Faster positioning” said Bjørn Gulden, Chief Executive Officer for PUMA.

I am pleased to confirm our partnership with PUMA. They represent a major international brand and we already know their professionalism and their commitment for African Football. We are looking forward to playing with our new kits.” said Augustin Senghor, President of the Senegalese Football Association.

The Senegal National Team, nicknamed the Lions of Teranga, will debut its new PUMA kit and training line in the upcoming FIFA window in March. 

The Senegal National Team joins the roster of federations like The Football Associations of Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana and Czech Republic. PUMA Football clubs, including Borussia Dortmund, Arsenal FC and soon Olympique de Marseille are also part of PUMA's portfolio, as well as some of the world’s best players such as Antoine Griezmann, Olivier Giroud, Sergio ‘Kun’ Agüero, Cesc Fàbregas, Mario Balotelli, Hector Bellerin, Marco Reus, Julian Weigl, Gianluigi Buffon and Yaya Touré amongst others.