09 January 2024 , 19:59
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Aston Villa have ditched Castore to sign a multi-million pound deal with Adidas following an embarrassing ‘wet-look’ fiasco involving the manufacturer.
Villa made headlines earlier in the season when players of the men’s and women’s side complained about the Castore kits soaking up moisture. Players were annoyed with the shirts, which retained sweat and made it heavy and uncomfortable. The club’s female players were said to be ‘dreading’ having to wear them.
The club, who have been with Castore for two years, looked into cancelling their multi-year contract with the Manchester-based British brand in September. The Telegraph now reports that they have indeed agreed to end their relationship at the end of the season - and have signed a new deal with Adidas, with owner Nassef Sawiris getting personally involved in the negotiations.
Sawiris, an Egyptian billionaire who made his fortune in construction, owns seven per cent of Adidas and was reportedly key to sealing the deal. As well as the ‘wet-look’ problem, the Villa owner was apparently keen to level up and get a high-profile kit manufacturer which is more in-keeping with the club’s upward trajectory.
The deal, it has been claimed, is a long-term agreement worth multi-millions of pounds for the men’s and women’s teams, as well as the academy. The relationship will start in time for the 2024-25 season after Villa finally found a solution to their stand-off with Castore.
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Unai Emery ’s side enjoyed a fantastic 2023 and are second in the Premier League, three points behind Liverpool. They are also in the last-16 of the Europa Conference League and have designs on playing in the Champions League next season.
Villa took delivery of new Castore shirts last month and the colder weather has helped the problem. But the club have moved on to Adidas regardless to join Newcastle in jumping ship from Castore. The two clubs will join Manchester United, Arsenal, Nottingham Forest and Fulham as the Premier League clubs with Adidas kit.
At the time of the complaints, a Castore spokesman said: "There has been some media speculation about a potential issue in the football kit supplied by Castore to Aston Villa Football Club. We are working closely in collaboration with the club to address this issue as quickly as possible to meet the standards we expect. We would like to thank the club for their patience and support to date.
The Castore shirt issue had been a particular problem for the women's team (Photo by Lewis Storey/Getty Images)"As a proud new British brand, we always hold ourselves to the highest of standards and strive to do everything we can to constantly improve the performance of our products. This means addressing any customer concerns with promptness and humility."
Castore makes the kit for the England cricket team, as well as Wolves, Rangers, Bayer Leverkusen, Charlton, Mansfield Town and MK Dons. Their most influential sponsorship is arguably with Andy Murray, while they also work with Adam Peaty. They also work with McLaren F1 team, as well as Saracens, Harlequins and Bath.