Mercedes has announced a new deal with German sportswear brand Adidas, in what has been branded as a multi-year partnership.
The deal comes after the sportswear maker ended its long-standing partnership with German football association DFB. It will be the first time that Adidas will enter F1 as a clothing sponsor, joining competitors Kappa, Puma and Castore.
According to Mercedes, Adidas will be making a “specially designed team kit will be built for the individual needs of each member’s role” which will also be available for purchase to fans. Several limited apparel drops are also planned throughout the year.
Reacting to the news on social media, fans said they were going to miss another key brand that the Adidas partnership replaces.
Fans to miss Tommy Hilfiger and Mercedes partnership after Adidas enters F1 for first time
As a consequence of the partnership between Adidas and Mercedes, luxury clothing brand Tommy Hilfiger will no longer sponsor the team. This is also the case for Puma, who have been with the team since 2011.
Tommy Hilfiger is a personal sponsor of Lewis Hamilton, who has now left the team to join Ferrari alongside Charles Leclerc.
Discussing the news on social media, one fan wrote: “Going to miss Tommy Hilfiger, but this is nice,” while another said: “So no more Tommy?”
Other fans were excited by the prospect, with one commenting on Instagram: “The merch is going to hit, hell yeah!” while another said, “Can’t wait to see the first drop.”
One fan is excited to see what the new team kit will look like compared to the other: “Oh I cannot wait to see the new team kit!!” Another commented: “I’m looking forward to this.”
Two fans pointed out two big brands working together: “Three stripes with three pointed star” and “Good job both brands with that sponsorship.”
Kimi Antonelli and George Russell ‘excited’ for £8.8 million deal
With Tommy Hilfiger and Puma, Mercedes was raking in a combined £6 million a year but the new partnership with Adidas is reported to be worth $11 million (£8.8 million), via sportsmole.com.
Commenting on the announcement, both George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli also showed their excitement for the deal.
In a post on Instagram, Russell said: “Excited for this” while Antonelli commented with the heart eyes emoji and high fives.
Product deals like this can be lucrative for F1, especially given merchandise sales have jumped by 1,084% since 2018 according to Fanatics.
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