As part of Liverpool’s push to grow commercial revenues, making the most of the leverage that exists with the club’s ownership group is important.
When the Reds inked a deal with Nike to replace New Balance back in 2019 it saw the club have to head to the High Court in London in order to extricate themselves from a clause that New Balance felt afforded them the opportunity to extend the deal into 2020 and beyond. New Balance offered more money per annum than Nike, with the clause stating that New Balance could exercise an option to extend if they matched or bettered an offer from elsewhere.
But it was decided by Mr Justice Teare, presiding, that the scale of Nike and the potential value of the deal through the addition of a 20 per cent sum for the Reds for the sale of Liverpool/Nike merchandise, would be more valuable. And so Liverpool and Nike began their journey, one that began in 2020 and looks set to continue for some years to come.
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The simpatico relationships that exist between Liverpool, owners Fenway Sports Group (FSP), and Nike are well publicised. A lot of it comes down to the connections between the three and basketball icon LeBron James, the Los Angeles Lakers star who has amassed a $1bn fortune as an active athlete through both his sporting career, but mainly through his off-court investments.
James, who arrived into the FSG fold in 2011 when the Reds owners gave him a 2% stake in Liverpool as a carrot for him to sign with their management agency, FSM. That turned into 1% of FSG’s overall empire in 2021 when RedBird Capital Partners
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