• Premier League

Unrealistic demands led to record Liverpool deal

ESPN staff
January 17, 2012
Liverpool's partnership with Adidas is coming to an end © PA Photos
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Liverpool's decision to sign a club record £25 million contract with Warrior Sports came after talks over an extension of their current deal with Adidas collapsed due to unrealistic demands from the club, Adidas has claimed.

The existing agreement between Liverpool and Adidas expires at the end of this season. Talks took place over an extension, but it was claimed technicalities relating to merchandise prompted a parting of ways.

However, Adidas claim the truth is Liverpool were demanding too much money relating to the team's on-field performance. The Reds have not won a major trophy since 2006, and they are currently seventh in the Premier League table following their seventh home draw of the season.

"The gap between their performance on the field and what the number should be is not in balance," Herbert Hainer, Adidas's chief executive officer, said in the Telegraph.

"Then we said, 'OK we will not do it'. That's the end of the story. It all depends on the success and the effort and the popularity, the exposure on TV, revenue you can generate by merchandising,.

"This all has to be brought in line between what you offer and what you get. We thought that what Liverpool were asking and what they were delivering was not in the right balance."

Liverpool's subsequent six-year deal with Boston-based Warrior Sports is worth £25 million, a figure that is reportedly almost double what the Reds earned from Adidas.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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