Adidas has sensationally announced the contracting of Lionel Messi (18) in a multi-million-euro marketing deal until 2012. The German sports equipment company, with the famous three stripes, snapped up the rising Barcelona FC Star and Argentinian national player under the nose of US sport giant Nike! Messi was under contract with Nike until yesterday. Nike was expected to land a new agreement with the teenage star, but the surprise hijacking of Messi by Adidas has sent shock waves around the highly-competitive world of soccer marketing.


Leo Messi, who had already trained in his new boots, joins Xavi, Van Bommel and Larsson, the other Barça players also under contract with Adidas. The German company plans to turn Messi into one of the world’s greatest marketing icons and leader of the next generation of players. Adidas seem to have found the perfect replacement for the players, who are in the final phase of their respective careers and whose expected marketing value will drop in the forseable future, such as Zinedine Zidane, David Beckham and Raul.


Leo Messi is hailed as becoming the star and a key protagonist in the 2006 World Cup in Germany, so the timing could not have been better. Adidas have surely set an impressive signal in highlighting their ambition to continue the strong expansion activities which started with the marketing idol David Beckham.


Nike has in Ronaldinho, the great mediatic icon, the ideal figurehead of exclusive marketing campaigns, who has his own strong growing line of products called `R10´. Now it will be interesting to see how Nike will respond to the loss of Messi.


There is no question about it; Adidas has scored a great goal! But I believe, the game is not over yet and a counter attack will follow.