TNL eSports Brand Tracker 002: Adidas and Team Vitality
![Adidas Becomes Team Vitality's Official Clothing Sponsor (Photo: Team Vitality)](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/578230a5e4fcb5fc31994d3d/1485225329878-0PA76M1KP0GE3XA6814M/ke17ZwdGBToddI8pDm48kFqelno_2IUJyp8-mkxSSrwUqsxRUqqbr1mOJYKfIPR7LoDQ9mXPOjoJoqy81S2I8N_N4V1vUb5AoIIIbLZhVYxCRW4BPu10St3TBAUQYVKchHvkjQb_0xHSO12Muon8kh6buR5kAQ0wGdgABCRIbKe9C0MJ8wObMujnbDF7UdF-/adidas_1.png)
Adidas Becomes Team Vitality's Official Clothing Sponsor (Photo: Team Vitality)
TNL Take: If the the first two Brand deals of 2017 are any indication of the way the year will turn out - it's going to be a very good one for eSports team owners.
French squad Team Vitality recently announced an Exclusive Apparel sponsorship with Adidas.
Team Vitality hosts 8 teams across games like Call of Duty and Rainbow Six to FIFA and of course, League of Legends.
![Adidas Becomes Team Vitality's Official Clothing Sponsor (Photo: Team Vitality)](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/578230a5e4fcb5fc31994d3d/1485227236129-RD1SEPYF9XEHLA0J8KJ3/ke17ZwdGBToddI8pDm48kNR9C5HfJv-w5-897IkwgJEUqsxRUqqbr1mOJYKfIPR7LoDQ9mXPOjoJoqy81S2I8N_N4V1vUb5AoIIIbLZhVYxCRW4BPu10St3TBAUQYVKcb0avCke7PsP3GhOBHD57CTwhvZaeFwMbsPGjstIkASfAdLHMOGJyvcp4e3gudkf4/image-asset.jpeg)
Adidas Becomes Team Vitality's Official Clothing Sponsor (Photo: Team Vitality)
Adidas isn't new to eSports having last year sponsored both the 2016 FIFA Interactive World Cup (FIWC) and a FIFA 16 tournament at the 2016 MLS All-Star Game.
Adidas has also sponsored several teams ranging from the Copenhagen Wolves to SK Gaming - that should sound familiar - going back 11 years.
They also currently have a partnership with the same team that Ronaldo invested in last week, CNB e-Sports Club:
![Twitter Chat (Photo: The Next Level)](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/578230a5e4fcb5fc31994d3d/1485227901426-0ZWGJJLPWIEZB9P9CO7L/ke17ZwdGBToddI8pDm48kAt7-2yL7qarvhpkXRgle84UqsxRUqqbr1mOJYKfIPR7LoDQ9mXPOjoJoqy81S2I8N_N4V1vUb5AoIIIbLZhVYxCRW4BPu10St3TBAUQYVKciklCC1yxMjGea66Erf7wxXZ4tPR54dFp-5_dhGYPkdxQ15ZUMLjc5IoQacPQxNG8/image-asset.png)
Twitter Chat (Photo: The Next Level)
This is a super smart move by Adidas to get a piece of the eSports merchandising money pie. If you've ever been to an eSports event you've noticed that it's very similar to a "regular" Sports event, a sea of jerseys repping your favorite team.
And this merch isn't cheap - Fnatic has a team jacket that goes for $80.
In May of last year in The Next Level 008, was my first look at the Collegiate eSports space and I mentioned how important the Apparel category would be and that Nike or Under Armour would enter the space in less than 2 years.
I was wrong on who but I'm glad to see the 3 stripes continue to invest in eSports.