Celtic announce the details of their Adidas windfall

Celtic’s switch from New Balance to Adidas last year boosted income from merchandise by just over £7.5m.

With turnover dipping from £70m to £60m bringing in £22.6m from merchandise was a very timely boost straight from the pockets of supporters.

Having previously been with Umbro, Nike and New Balance the switch to Adidas was highly popular among supporters with concept strips appearing online as fans guessed what impact the three stripes would have on the traditional hoops.

In the club’s annual report CEO Michael Nicholson writes:

In the last year we have enjoyed working alongside Adidas, our new technical kit partner. The response of the Club’s supporters to the new merchandise has been outstanding, with record sales through our stores and online. This reflects both the combined global strength of the Club and Adidas brand as well as the quality of the products on offer and we look forward to successful years ahead with Adidas as a key partner.

Three strips came out last season as well as the training and leisurewear, producing a 50% increase in income during a pandemic is quite an achievement, demonstrating the core backing that the club has worldwide.

Bringing in £22.6m from one source is more than all except one SPFL club can turnover in a year, in the year to 30 June 2020 Aberdeen reported turnover of £14.335m.