Yahoo Sport 
Barcelona strike £1.4bn deal but Liverpool won't be too concerned before their change
It won't be confirmed officially until early next year, but from 2025 Liverpool will have a new kit partner.
Having been willing to head to the High Court in London in 2019 in a bid to extricate themselves from a clause in a deal that would have seen them extend terms with previous partners, New Balance, Liverpool then clinched a deal with Nike - one that began in 2020 and was to last for five years.
While a lower guaranteed annual sum for the Reds - believed to be around £35m per annum - the actual value of the deal was much higher for the club, more than double thanks to the club receiving 20 per cent of the royalties received on the sale of LFC/Nike branded merchandise.
READ MORE: Stefan Bajcetic reveals Liverpool transfer option and how 'messy' move came about
Collaborations with basketball icon and partner in Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group, LeBron James, as well as with Nike's sister brand Converse, the Reds were able to grow revenues from the partnership through new merchandising channels. However, the first years of the deal were impeded in terms of what would have been achieved through physical retail due to the coronavirus pandemic.
But the deal with Nike is to end following the culmination of this season, with the Reds having put the deal out to tender earlier this year. Nike, Adidas and Puma all came to the table, but it is understood, as first reported by SportBusiness several months ago, that Adidas will be the brand with whom Liverpool are set to partner from 2025.
The popular move among the biggest European clubs in recent years has to lock into long deals of 10 years or more with kit partners, something that provides a very eye-catching headline figure but, most importantly, guaranteed revenue that can be relied up each and every season. That's something that's important for clubs that want to raise capital from financial institutions and want security when it comes to guaranteed incomes.
The problem with such a move is that it locks clubs in to the same terms for the period, albeit with caveats attached for such things as winning the Champions League or not even qualifying for European competition, something that can be financially impactful on both ends of the scale.
The potential value of the Adidas deal has been rumoured at anywhere £75m per year upwards. In reality, the figures are largely guesswork and the true value of the deal won't be seen until it's reflected on the balance sheet a couple of years in. Tottenham Hotspur's annual sum received from Nike is far smaller than their 'big six' rivals, but they also retain greater flexibility over merchandising and licensing rights.
It expected that the deal with Adidas will be shorter in length than the likes of Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal and Chelsea. Reds owners FSG have long shown their ability to deliver a strong financial deal, and in opting for a shorter term they provide themselves with a chance to glean greater rewards against what the market rate will be in another five years.
This past week saw Barcelona trumpet a 14-year deal with Nike worth a reported £1.4bn. A pretty staggering sum that equates to around £105m per season, while Real Madrid's is £105m per year with Adidas.
But 14 years is a long time to be locked in, and Barcelona, still finding their way out of the financial crisis which enveloped the football club from the pandemic onwards, one that put the brakes on their enormous spending power in the transfer market, have had to sell off plenty of estate and future right to aid the balance sheet.
Nike will have had a little more willingness to play ball, too, and that might well have been borne, in part, from Liverpool's decision to pivot away from the US sportswear giant.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta was, reportedly, open to taking a different direction from next season despite the long-standing history that Nike and Barcelona have together, having been kit partners since 1998 when Barca moved from Kappa.
But having lost Manchester United to Adidas - and with Real Madrid a club in the Adidas stable too - as well as Liverpool's decision, having a major, blue-chip football club as part of their offering was important, and that would likely have helped make the decision to engage in such a hefty deal more enticing.
But for Liverpool, it doesn't make too much sense to be comparing what the value of the Nike deal to Barcelona is compared to what the Reds will get from Adidas. There are many variables, and having flexibility in the market is something that Liverpool will feel gives them leverage over their rivals in the short to medium term. Shorter deals mean manufacturers have to tender again in three or four years time, and that impacts the value of the deal, but it also often gives more control to the football clubs on how they can market their brand.
