NEO, an esports organisation currently competing in EA Sports’ FIFA series, today announced the addition of Outfitter and Nike as collaborative apparel partners.
Outfitter, a German football and sports apparel retailer, will be the “lead implementer for the individualisation and refinement of NEO’s teamwear,” according to a release.
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According to a release, Outfitter initiated the collaboration between the three entities. In addition to the jerseys, which feature Nike branding across the 2020-21 FIFA esports season, Nike will also produce other NEO-branded products.
Thomas Bohner, Head of Marketing at Outfitter, commented in a release: “We had to take the opportunity to work together with NEO and Nike on this exciting project. We learned a lot in our first year in esports, especially how the look and feel of jerseys and merchandising pieces have to look like to catch the minds and hearts of the community. NEO is extremely innovative and wants to break new ground, which fits perfectly with our thinking.
“As a team sports specialist, we are looking forward to the individual finishing of the Nike jerseys for the coming season as well as the development of an exclusive merchandising collection hand in hand with the boys”.
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Outfitter is already partnered with another FIFA esports team, FOKUS CLAN, while Nike has existing esports collaborations with a number of teams including T1, SK Gaming, Vodafone Giants, and the Chinese League of Legends Pro League (LPL).
Over the weekend, NEO unveiled a new FIFA roster anchored by former world champion Spencer “Gorilla” Ealing and a new kit design, as well as a main partner in the form of paysafecard. NEO intends to expand into other esports in the future, as well.
Dan Woods, Manager of NEO, added: “After our first season with a lot of sportive success, we were very meticulous in our search for the right partner for sportswear, fashion, and merchandising, and found them in the duo of the two companies: Outfitter and Nike!
“We are very pleased that we were able to win Nike as a supplier through the partnership with Outfitter – the jerseys for the coming season are very impressive and will certainly be well received by the FIFA community. Outfitter has proven time and again in classical sports, but also in esports, how individually, flexibly, and precisely to the wishes and specifications of the respective partners. Having these two companies on our side means a lot to us.”
Esports Insider says: FIFA is an esport with a lot of mainstream potential, and NEO is making big moves ahead of the coming FIFA 21 season. It’ll be interesting to see how this organisation evolves as it eyes expansion into other games, as well.