Bury the hatchet with Nike. And sign a contract that, according to president Joan Laporta, “is the best sports equipment contract in history.” Up to 419 of the 488 members who connected and agreed to Barça’s new link with Nike until 2038 believed it. They did so without knowing the economic details of the deal due to the confidentiality clause signed between Barça and Nike. Participation, again, was low. There were 4,331 delegate members called for the club’s fifth telematic assembly.
488 members connected out of 4,331 called
419 votes in favor
27 against
22 blank
The financial details are not known. But voters do know that there was a mediator who intervened at the moment of maximum conflict between the two parties. That is, when Barça was negotiating with Puma and when it tried to make its own shirt. Said mediator is Darren Dein. An old acquaintance in the club because he already participated in the Barça contract with Spotify. “When we were at the moment of maximum tension, the only thing both parties agreed on was having a mediator,” said treasurer Ferran Olivé. “We have paid for it between Barça and Nike. “It’s a market commission,” said Laporta, who explained that Darren Dein worked more for Barça, even organizing a meeting at the beginning of March in Barcelona with a delegation from the American firm led by Heidi O’Neill, president of consumer, product and brand of Nike Inc.
“When we were at the moment of maximum tension, the only thing both parties agreed on was having a mediator,” said treasurer Ferran Olivé.
Sources familiar with the negotiation point out that Dein could have paid a commission of 3% of the total agreement with Nike with which Barça can earn 1.7 billion euros in these 14 years of contract if all the bonuses are met. The base of the contract without bonus is 1.4 billion euros.
Beyond the achievement of the contract, Barcelona, with the mediation of Dein, has also withdrawn the three lawsuits crossed with Nike. According to club sources, Nike failed to honor some bonuses for total sales that had neither been quantified nor settled to Barça. In fact, in 2021 and with the previous board chaired by former president Bartomeu, there were other litigations with a mix of demands to claim 50 million from Nike for abuse of a dominant position, non-payment of royalties for the sale of replicas and abusive penalties.
A new contract without penalties
It happens that now there are no penalties with the new link with the Oregon multinational until 2038. “It is an ascending contract. Now the revaluation of the contract is increasing and it will reach between 10 and 15 percent. Another point is that beyond sponsorship with a fixed amount and bonuses for winning titles and without malus, which I am grateful for because Nike has seen that we could not afford it,” said Olivé.
And with the last update of the contract that was signed in 2016 with former president Bartomeu, there were penalties. Sources familiar with the 2016 negotiations point out that winning the men’s Champions League meant, for example, earning 5 million more. Not qualifying to compete in the European competition left 10%. In practice, this meant that in these last two seasons Barcelona earned only 64 million euros annually.
For this reason, Barça tested Puma and considered creating shirts under the Barça brand. “Now we have signed a contract between equals. “Barça needs Nike and Nike needs Barcelona,” said Olivé. And he revealed that Barcelona has already collected the renewal bonus which, according to club sources, is 158 million euros. At the accounting level, this bonus is prorated for the 14 years of the contract. Therefore, it does not count in full for financial fair play. Barcelona still needs to add 60 million euros to its coffers to register Dani Olmo and Pau Víctor.
Barça has already paid in the 158 million euros of the renewal bonus
Olivé explained that the contract also includes a clause for equality and women’s sports and, in this sense, the same bonuses will be received for the titles of the men’s and women’s first team. As this newspaper learned, this bonus will be three million euros for titles.
The agreement also specifies that a new operating model will be carried out. Thus, Nike will have exclusivity in the marketing of technical products and the club in products with the Barça brand. For its part, the club regains control of retail operations and, most importantly for its interests, global e-commerce, which can lead to significant growth through BLM (Barça Licensing Merchandising), the company of FC Barcelona that manages it.
The FC Barcelona store
Under the contract, Nike will continue to be the main sponsor of the club, so its advertising will continue to appear in the different facilities and during the celebration of the matches in the new stadium and eventually in the Estadi Olímpic Lluis Companys de Montjuïc, the Estadi Johan Cruyff , the Palau Blaugrana and the Barcelona sports city.
At the Spotify Camp Nou it will have a greater presence and will give its name to one of the VIP rooms. In addition, it will be able to use athletes from the professional sections for advertising events, which may be held at the club’s facilities, and Nike will be able to sell products through Barça’s different channels.
The assembly was closed without the collaboration of Juli Guiu, vice president of marketing at FC Barcelona and the head of the sponsorship area. There are those who claim within the club that they were not entirely happy with the participation of Darren Dein.
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