Adidas have hit back at suggestions that the company were worried about Lionel Messi’s shy personality when they began their sponsorship of the former Barcelona star.
Messi has become synonymous with Adidas, having worn their boots since 2006, but he actually began his football career as a Nike-sponsored athlete. The Paris Saint-Germain playmaker was spotted early on by Nike, who had Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo on their books together for three years.
As the 2006 World Cup approached, Nike had two of the most exciting young players in football before Messi made the switch to rivals Adidas. A new book entitled ‘Messi vs. Ronaldo: One Rivalry, Two GOATs, and the Era That Remade the World’s Game’, by Jonathan Clegg and Joshua Robinson, claims Messi left Nike over a ‘trivial issue’.
It is claimed that Messi’s father, Jorge, had made an 'innocuous request' to be sent more athletic gear, only to be ignored. That snubbing, plus Adidas’ lucrative offer, prompted Messi to leave Nike and begin his relationship with the German brand which continues to this day.
The book, which is being serialised by the Wall Street Journal, also claims that, while they were initially annoyed to lose Messi to a rival – and even took the matter to the Spanish courts – Nike were consoled by the fact they had kept Ronaldo. It is claimed that Nike executives believed Messi had “next to no public personality” and that Adidas had similar concerns about the young playmaker’s shy nature.
In a statement to Mirror Football , Adidas have denied that allegation, pointing to the fact that Messi has now been with the brand for 16 years and signed a lifetime contract in 2017. “We are extremely proud of our long standing relationship with Lionel Messi,” an Adidas spokesperson said.
“In 2006 we were able to provide him with an innovative range of footwear that suited his game, the F50 range, as well as telling his story in our global brand campaign, Impossible is Nothing. Our partnership has gone from strength to strength and we continue to be in awe of his era-defining performances.”
Despite the recent claims, the facts from 2006 show that Nike did want to keep Messi. They took Messi to court in Spain to try and enforce what they called “a binding agreement”, insisting that they were prepared to take "whatever means necessary" to prevent Messi leaving.
However, the court ruled in Messi’s favour and the ruling paved the way for Messi and Ronaldo’s rivalry on the pitch to spill over into the commercial world.
Messi has certainly benefited from his association with Adidas. The value of Messi’s lifetime contract with Adidas is unknown, but according to Forbes, Messi is currently the highest paid athlete in the world, having made $130m (£116m) in pre-tax gross earnings over the previous 12 months.
