Latest news with #Herzogenaurach
The Guardian
15-07-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Manchester City and their extraordinary £1bn agreement with Puma
It is well known that the birth of two global sportswear companies, Adidas and Puma, was fuelled by a family feud between two German brothers, Adi and Rudolf Dassler. After working together for 30 years, the pair fell out shortly after the second world war; Rudi founding Puma in 1948 and Adi starting, you guessed it, Adidas in 1949. What started the rift is a point of contention. The most common explanation is that Rudi had an affair with Adi's wife, Käthe, for which he was never forgiven. Other theories suggest it was Rudolf's increasing suspicion that his brother was behind his conscription into the German army and thus his short imprisonment by the allies. The brothers reportedly never spoke again and, like a scene out of a Twix advert, set up rival factories on opposite sides of the river Aurach, which runs through the small town of Herzogenaurach. The global headquarters of Puma and Adidas remain there today, two miles apart. The town is still divided: bars, bakeries and barber shops are all affiliated with one or the other, while the two biggest football clubs, FC Herzogenaurach and ASV Herzogenaurach are sponsored by Puma and Adidas respectively. The two companies appear to detest each other: Lothar Matthäus – son to a family of Puma workers who grew up in Herzogenaurach and played for FC – only signed for Bayern Munich in 1984 on the condition he could continue to wear Puma boots, becoming the first ever player at the Adidas-sponsored Bavarian giants to do so. Football Daily is not privy to the details as to why Puma has decided to spend £1bn in a partnership for the next 10 years, but it certainly seems like a bold move to fork out £100m-a-year – a record per-year contract for a Premier League club and a gargantuan increase on Puma's £65m-per-year deal it signed in 2019 with City – on a divisive club awaiting a verdict on 115 financial charges and a side that seems to be, based upon performances last season and at the Copa Gianni, slightly on the wane. Might Puma's new deal have something to do with topping Adidas's paltry-looking £60m a-season deal with City rivals Liverpool, signed only a few months ago? It feels like a bit of a stretch, but as City and Liverpool or Adi and Rudi Dassler know so well, ego and tribalism can lead to some wild decisions. Whatever the reasons behind the extraordinary agreement, City suits must be delighted to have renewed a deal with a company not linked to their owners. 'We joined forces with Puma with the ambition to challenge ourselves and go beyond the expectations,' whooped chief suit Ferran Soriano. 'We have achieved this and more over the last six seasons. Today's renewal and extension solidifies our relationship and projects it to an even brighter future.' After watching Chelsea – a club famous for their own financial gymnastics – trouser around £85m for their Copa Gianni triumph, the Puma deal certainly softens the blow for City's early exit from the tournament. Just how the £1bn will be invested remains to be seen but at least Pep Guardiola can afford a few more delayed kick-offs. It's unacceptable that in the 21st century, people with dwarfism are still used for entertainment at private parties, particularly when public figures are involved. The dignity and rights of our community cannot be a source of amusement under any circumstance' – Carolina Puente, president of the Association for People with Achondroplasia and Other Skeletal Dysplasias, vows to take legal action over the reported hiring of people with dwarfism as entertainment at Lamine Yamal's recent 18th birthday party, condemning the practice as discriminatory. The player's representatives are yet to comment. As an Arsenal supporter for many a decade, I should just like to say that The Auld Triangle pub you referred to (yesterday's Football Daily), was to those who should easily remember, in fact originally named the Plimsoll Arms. People I knew were always perturbed by its renaming, so despite the fact that it's now a gastro pub, I'm glad that, name-wise, it's returning to its roots. Make mine a Guinness!' – Colin Grant (and others). When I first came to London in 1997, I moved into a house on St Thomas's Road, opposite the Auld Triangle. The landlord was grouchy when it was busy, but really approachable when it was quiet (non-match days). Arsenal fans really sustained that pub, because in the off-season, sometimes we would be the only patrons in the pub. I remember quiz nights with the bullet-headed, no-necked Robbie ('It's ahnly a paaaahnd!'), an intimidating figure, but a stand-up comedian in his own right. Happy days' – Paul Chan. To describe Cole Palmer as scooting through 'Wythenshawe high street' (yesterday's Football Daily) is to misunderstand the type of settlement that Wythenshawe is. As an overspill housing estate on the edge of the Greater Manchester conurbation, its pencil-pushing post-war town planners did not see fit to install anything as grand as a high street, but a civic centre grandly named the 'Forum' and pedestrianised shopping area can be found sitting nearish to the middle of this somewhat amorphous suburban mass. I wouldn't expect a London-centric, anti-northern email to be aware of all this, and this lazy journalism points to a wider decline at the centre of our once great, free press' – Mike Lovelady. If there's one thing to be thankful about at the Copa Gianni, it's that Donald Trump didn't squeeze his corpulent rump into a full Chelsea strip first, like the last guy to sneak his way into the Blues' cup-raising celebrations' – Declan Hackett. If you have any, please send letters to Today's winner of our prizeless letter o' the day is … Declan Hackett. Terms and conditions for our competitions, when we run them, can be viewed here. Here's David Squires on … Trump crashing Chelsea's Copa Gianni party. Now Fifa's big cheese knows how Elon Musk and so many others feel. As Copa Gianni drew to its close, as that hour-long trophy celebration reached its climax, Donald Trump assumed centre-stage and celebrated as if he had won – and created – the competition all by himself. Perhaps those David May/Pepe Reina antics were Trump's reaction to be being shunned by Tyrique George during the medal ceremony preceding the trophy lift itself. It turned out, as confirmed in a puff interview with influencer Emily Austin, last seen on Instachat hanging out with Donald, JD Vance and RFK Jnr, he actually owns the original Copa Gianni trophy on which the name of the current Fifa president is inscribed – twice, just to be sure, like. 'I said, When are you going to pick up the trophy? [They said] 'We're never going to pick it up. You can have it forever in the Oval Office. We're making a new one,' parped Trump before segueing into his usual spiel. 'We're doing very well on the other stage, on the political stage, on the financial stage.' The Tiffany-designed trophy, and its special key, will remain until Trump eventually departs office. Jordan Henderson has opted for another shirt containing red and white by signing a two-year deal at Brentford. 'He has been one of the most influential leaders in modern Premier League years,' roared Bees boss Keith Andrews. 'He's still phenomenally fit and phenomenally motivated to achieve things.' Liverpool have told Bayern Munich where to go with their latest bid for Luis Díaz. Fresh off his Copa Gianni triumph with Chelsea, Cole Palmer has arrived in St Kitts – birthplace of grandfather, Sterry – to a welcome very much the opposite of his trademark goal celebration. '[His] visit is a powerful reminder of the strength and pride of our diaspora. His presence and mentorship will inspire the next generation to believe that global success is possible, no matter where you come from,' cheered Dr Terrance Drew, PM of St Kitts and Nevis. Switzerland's preparations for their Euro 2025 quarter-final with Spain aren't going particularly smoothly, a sickness bug in the squad forcing Tuesday's training session to be shelved. The latest frontier in multi-club ownership is here: Burnley's owners, Velocity Sport Limited, have taken over Espanyol. Two months after leaving Al-Hilal, Jorge Jesus has taken charge as head coach of bitter Saudi rivals Al-Nassr. 'It's official. Mr Jorge Jesus is the new coach of Al-Nassr,' tooted the club. And in feeling-old news, Jessey Sneijder, son of former Netherlands international Wesley, has signed his first pro contract with FC Utrecht. How Poland's Euros showing transformed a nation's view of women's football. By Joanna Wiśniowska, in this extract from the latest edition of our sister email. All that can be said with certainty about the future of Copa Gianni is that it is not going away, writes Matt Hughes. Abomination or fun? Our readers on Copa Gianni. Premier League fans in Asia want to feel valued – and not just as a source of revenue. John Duerden reports. And Sean Ingle, for one, welcomes our new AI overlords. To March 2009 and Gabriel Batistuta turns his hand to polo during a successful outing for Loro Piana against Chapelco in Buenos Aires. Never the greatest lover of the beautiful game, Batigol once revealed: 'It's a hobby, but I always try to improve my standard, because the better I play, the more fun I have.'
National Post
01-07-2025
- Business
- National Post
PUMA and Borussia Dortmund Extend Partnership
Article content Sorry, your browser doesn't support embedded videos. Article content HERZOGENAURACH, Germany — Sports company PUMA has extended its long-standing partnership with Borussia Dortmund, and will continue to create products that cater to BVB's many passionate fans around the world and match the club's dynamic, fast paced style of football. Article content Since the start of their partnership in the 2012/13 season, BVB has celebrated many successes, such as reaching the finals of the 2012/13 and 2023/24 UEFA Champions League and winning the 2016/17 and 2020/21 German DFB Cup. The club is currently participating in the FIFA Club World Cup, where it has already reached the round of 16. Article content BVB continues to set the standard in European football when it comes to matchday attendance, with more than 80,000 fans visiting the Signal Iduna Park on average. Article content 'By extending our long-term partnership with BVB ahead of schedule, we are showing how deeply committed we are to the club and its values,' said Matthias Bäumer, Chief Commercial Officer at PUMA. 'Season after season, we are inspired by the club's incredible fan culture, the passion of the legendary Yellow Wall and the team's attractive style of play. We look forward to continuing to write German football history together.' Article content 'Our partnership with PUMA has worked so well, because our views of the sport and our values are so closely aligned,' said Carsten Cramer, Managing Director of Borussia Dortmund. 'What we have achieved together so far could not have been done with any other partner and we are very excited to continue on this path for the coming seasons.' Article content As part of the contract extension, PUMA will continue to equip all male, female and youth teams and create replica and fanwear products. Article content PUMA Article content PUMA is one of the world's leading sports brands, designing, developing, selling and marketing footwear, apparel and accessories. For more than 75 years, PUMA has relentlessly pushed sport and culture forward by creating fast products for the world's fastest athletes. PUMA offers performance and sport-inspired lifestyle products in categories such as Football, Running and Training, Basketball, Golf, and Motorsports. It collaborates with renowned designers and brands to bring sport influences into street culture and fashion. The PUMA Group owns the brands PUMA, Cobra Golf and stichd. The company distributes its products in more than 120 countries, employs about 20,000 people worldwide, and is headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Germany. Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
5️⃣ good reasons why Germany will win the Euros
For a long time, the German women's national team was considered a title guarantee. However, the last golden trophy is now more than ten years ago. This year, the chances are good again that Germany will compete for the title. Five reasons why this is the case: 1. The belief in the title "We believe in the title," said Laura Freigang at the start of the preparation in Herzogenaurach in mid-June. "We know that we can do it. That's the incentive." While national coach Christian Wück is still holding back with such concrete statements, Freigang is not the only one to clearly express these words. Sports director Nia Künzer, whose contract was extended shortly before the European Championship, is also optimistic about the tournament in Switzerland: "I'm starting the tournament with the goal of winning the title." 📸 GEORG HOCHMUTH Advertisement The reason for this self-confidence is also the recent successes in the Nations League, with a 4-0 win against the Netherlands and a 6-0 win against Austria. Christian Wück also considers it important that his players really believe in winning the title. In an interview with the Sportschau, he said: "For me, it's important: are we just talking about it or are we convinced of it? We've been working on that for a long time, so that we don't just want to talk about it, but really plant this conviction in us, let this dream grow in us, that we can really hold this trophy up in the air at the end." 2. The mix in the squad Eleven vice-European champions and seven tournament newcomers are in Christian Wück's squad. Experience meets curiosity, calmness meets enthusiasm, carelessness meets stability. A good mix that has already led to success in the past. Captain Giulia Gwinn and co-captain Janina Minge lead this mixed team, which has now found itself after initial difficulties under Wück. 📸 Stuart Franklin - 2025 Getty Images Advertisement Due to the many changes in the test matches, there was initially unrest in the team, but in the recent Nations League matches, the team has been very harmonious. Young players like Cora Zicai bring not only a good dose of motivation but are also already at a good level in terms of their playing skills. 3. Many fans thanks to the proximity to Germany Many Germans are eager to watch a European Championship match of the DFB women's team live - according to the results of a survey by However, the high prices in Switzerland are still deterring some. Nevertheless, it is expected that several fans from Germany will travel to the matches of the national team. After all, it's not far to St. Gallen, Basel, or Zurich - depending on where you live in Germany - and can also be arranged without an overnight stay. 📸 FOCKE STRANGMANN - AFP or licensors Advertisement The many home fans should give the German team an additional boost. Christian Wück says: "We need this support from the fans. We want to get the people behind us and further increase the importance of women's football. We're looking forward to as much support as possible in Switzerland." And this support will be great. Five days before the start of the tournament, FIFA announced that more than 600,000 tickets had already been sold, with 61,000 tickets going to German fans so far. 4. Wide awake from the start In the 4-0 win against the Netherlands in the Nations League, Christian Wück's DFB team dominated from the start. As early as nine minutes in, Linda Dallmann was able to set the first exclamation mark with the opening goal. In the game against Austria, it went even faster. Sydney Lohmann scored after just 14 seconds. The national team had never taken the lead so quickly before. 📸 Christian Bruna - 2025 Getty Images Advertisement The recent matches show that the players are wide awake on the pitch from the start and are no longer easily caught off guard. At the beginning of Christian Wück's tenure, it was different, for example, when they faced Italy at the end of the year. After just eleven minutes, they conceded a goal, which was self-inflicted due to a defensive error. However, consistency has since set in, and the team knows its roles and tasks exactly. A sleepy start against high-profile opponents like Poland's Ewa Pajor in the European Championship opener would be fatal. 5. Strong Bayern faction With a total of seven players, double winners FC Bayern Munich provide the largest faction in the DFB women's squad. Above all, captain Giulia Gwinn has found her role perfectly, even if she acts differently and less loudly than her predecessor Alexandra Popp. Already in the recent Nations League matches against Norway and Austria, the range of Bayern players was a reason for the success. Linda Dallmann (one goal), Lea Schüller (three goals), Sydney Lohmann (two goals), Klara Bühl (one goal, three assists), and Giulia Gwinn (one assist) were significantly involved in the total of ten goals. The Bayern block could also be an important key to the title at the European Championship. In addition to Gwinn, Lea Schüller and Klara Bühl will also take on a lot of responsibility. Schüller has not always been consistently accurate in scoring goals in recent years, but has recently presented herself in top form both in the club and in the national team. Like Bühl, she is likely to have a regular place in the starting lineup. 📸 Christian Bruna - 2025 Getty Images Advertisement Bühl is expected to give stability to the offense and guide and direct other players like Jule Brand. Recently, she has handled this task well and has shown herself to be sovereign in the national team. The fact that so many important players in the DFB selection also play together in the club and know each other inside out could pay off. This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here. 📸 Christian Bruna - 2025 Getty Images
Yahoo
28-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Germany coach trusts his women's Euros team on social media, visits
Germany coach Christian Wück is not setting up strict rules on his players' social media activities and is also convinced of their maturity when it comes to planned visits from family and friends at the upcoming women's Euros. Wück told reporters on Saturday at Germany's pre-tournament camp in Herzogenaurach that the players have been educated on social media from the junior level onwards at the national federation DFB. Advertisement "If we now have to talk to grown-ups about what they are allowed to and what not then it is more or less too late," the former men's U17 coach said. Wück said the DFB is paying a lot of attention to "prepare the young players for what happens in social media." Spokeswoman Annette Seitz referred to the DFB's social media department which is monitoring various platforms. She said that "the players are handling it very responsibly" and added on potential shitstorms and hate comments: "Should something be coming from the other side about which we have to talk then we will do that." Advertisement Wück also expects common sense from his players when it comes to planned visits from family members and friends the day after each match at the team hotel in Zurich - into which they will move on Monday ahead of their first game against Poland on Friday. "That's exactly how I envisage the whole thing: We want a feel-good oasis, so to say. But of course we also want the players to perform at their best," Wück said. "I think it's a give and take. And so far it's working very, very well."
National Post
04-06-2025
- Business
- National Post
PUMA's Voices of a RE:GENERATION Present 2024 Sustainability Report for Young Audiences
Article content HERZOGENAURACH, Germany — Sports company PUMA is making its 2024 sustainability report accessible for young audiences with the help of video and social media content created by the Gen-Z environmentalists that are part of the Voices of a RE:GENERATION initiative. Article content The Voices, who joined PUMA in 2023 to advise the company on its sustainability strategy, will summarize the complex content of the report and focus on the issues that matter most to young audiences, including climate change and circularity. In doing so, they offer fresh takes on PUMA's environmental priorities, while reflecting the concerns and expectations of Gen-Z. Article content 'As a brand, we know that publishing sustainability data isn't enough. Today's consumers want clarity, action and accountability and they want it communicated in ways that resonate,' said Kerstin Neuber, Senior Director Corporate Communications at PUMA. 'The Voices will help us share our challenges and achievements in a way that's accessible, honest and rooted in the issues young people want to know more about.' Article content In its 2024 sustainability report, PUMA details the tangible process it's making to lower its carbon footprint across both its own operations and supply chain. This includes setting science-based targets, increasing renewable energy use and working closely with suppliers to drive measurable reductions. The brand is also stepping up its approach to circularity. In 2024, it reduced waste to landfill by 87.8% per footwear pair and diverted 99% of fabric waste from landfill, with the majority reused or recycled. Article content To address material choices, PUMA has committed to sourcing deforestation-free bovine leather by 2030 and is partnering with the Textile Exchange and cattle farmers in Brazil to support both animal welfare and protect critical forest ecosystems that store vast amounts of carbon. It's also expanding initiatives like RE:FIBRE, the brand's textile-to-textile recycling programme, to cut reliance on virgin polyester and lower the environmental footprint of its products and packaging. Article content PUMA achieved its goal of making 9 out of 10 products from recycled or certified materials and made further progress with its sustainability targets, such as lowering its greenhouse gas emissions. The full report, containing more than 200 pages, was published in late April. Article content As a result of its 'Conference of the People' event in London in 2022, PUMA made it a priority to be more proactive in communicating its sustainability strategy to younger audiences. New research commissioned by PUMA shows that more than half (55%) of 18–27-year-old consumers globally believe brands aren't being transparent enough about their environmental impact. Reducing carbon emissions is one of the top priorities for Gen-Z when it comes to responsible production, with one in four (25%) identifying it as a major concern. Article content More information about the Voices of a RE:GENERATION initiative can be found on PUMA's FOREVER. BETTER. website, and the individual Instagram channels of the Voices. Watch Aishwarya Sharma's content here, Andrew Burgess's content here, and Luke Jaque-Rodney's content here. Article content PUMA Article content PUMA is one of the world's leading sports brands, designing, developing, selling and marketing footwear, apparel and accessories. For more than 75 years, PUMA has relentlessly pushed sport and culture forward by creating fast products for the world's fastest athletes. PUMA offers performance and sport-inspired lifestyle products in categories such as Football, Running and Training, Basketball, Golf, and Motorsports. It collaborates with renowned designers and brands to bring sport influences into street culture and fashion. The PUMA Group owns the brands PUMA, Cobra Golf and stichd. The company distributes its products in more than 120 countries, employs about 20,000 people worldwide, and is headquartered in Herzogenaurach/Germany. Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content
