Without giving financial details, Chelsea said it represented the largest commercial deal in the Premier League club's history. Media reports have indicated Adidas were paying Chelsea an estimated 30 million pounds ($43.38 million) a year, with the Nike deal likely to be double that figure. Adidas agreed in 2014 to pay 750 million pounds ($1.1 billion) to replace Nike as sponsor of Manchester United for a decade. "This is an incredibly exciting and important deal for the club," Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia told the club website (www.chelseafc.com). Chelsea, owned by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, won the Premier League title in 2014-15 but a poor run of form last season meant they failed to qualify for European football.

Source: thestar October 13, 2016 14:37 UTC