INTERSPORT becomes retail licensee

UEFA and adidas today announced the appointment of INTERSPORT as the official sports shop of licensed products for UEFA EURO 2012 and UEFA EURO 2016.

Dedicated EURO areas will be installed in INTERSPORT stores in 20 countries, while INTERSPORT will also operate on-site sales in the stadiums and FanZones at both tournaments on an exclusivity basis.

UEFA, adidas – official sponsor and official licensee of UEFA until 2017 – and INTERSPORT announced the signing of the deal after adidas, as part of its long-term strategic football cooperation, transferred these rights to INTERSPORT International Corporation. As a precedent, INTERSPORT had similarly and successfully implemented sales of licensed products in its stores for UEFA EURO 2008.

The agreement covers 20 European countries, including the respective EURO host nations, Poland and Ukraine in 2012 and France in 2016. INTERSPORT will exclusively operate the on-site sales of licensed products at the UEFA EURO 2012 and UEFA EURO 2016 stadiums and official FanZones.

As the official sports shop of licensed products, INTERSPORT will offer products in 800 stores across Europe during the event phase. Each store will have a dedicated section for selling the licensed products range, with the first product range available in the host cities 18 months before the event.

Commenting on the appointment, Franz Julen, CEO of INTERSPORT International, said: "Football is and remains a key category of almost every INTERSPORT store. The cooperation with UEFA and adidas enables us to further differentiate from the competition and to continue strengthening our position as the world's biggest football retailer.

"Our distribution in 39 countries and dedicated sales areas in the stores will assist in marketing UEFA EURO licensed products worldwide and further promoting the events. The on-site sales in the stadia will be of an outstanding quality as for UEFA EURO 2008."

Roland Auschel, CSO of adidas, said: "We are pleased to further intensify our strong collaboration with INTERSPORT after a highly successful collaboration around the 2010 FIFA World Cup and UEFA EURO 2008. adidas is the global market leader in the football category and INTERSPORT, with its wide reach and high competence, is the right retail partner for us to successfully market our exciting innovations for the upcoming UEFA EURO 2012 and 2016."

David Taylor, CEO of UEFA Events SA, added: "The EURO championships are a highlight of the football calendar for many football fans. It is important for them to have easy access to merchandise for these tournaments in which their national teams compete.

"Following on from the success of the business relationship previously established between UEFA, INTERSPORT and adidas, I am pleased to confirm the appointment of INTERSPORT as the official sports shop for licensed products for the EURO 2012 and EURO 2016 competitions, as well as for the U21 Championship and the Women's EURO. We look forward to the appearance of a range of tournament merchandise in the wide network of INTERSPORT stores across Europe."