Which brand is leading the football market in 2024? Based on the recent activities of major football brands, we rank them.
The Power Ranking of the Big Three
As far as the Big Three (Adidas, Nike, and Puma) are concerned, we believe that Adidas is currently surpassing Nike and Puma in terms of football operations, especially in the 24-25 season. Let's look at the three main aspects: Football shirts, football boots, and the supply of balls for major tournaments.
Adidas Goes All In on Football
Football Kits
In the top 5 European leagues alone, Puma leads the way in terms of the number of teams it supplies, with 17 teams, followed by Adidas and Nike with 16 teams each. So, if we solely take the number of teams, it is incredibly balanced.
If we look at what each brand counts as its top teams, Nike says it has six teams (Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Chelsea, Tottenham, Inter & PSG), Adidas five (Manchester United, Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid & Juventus) and Puma three (Manchester City, AC Milan & Dortmund). However, this metric is also not decisive, as it is only the definition of brands.
The best way to find out which brand is at the top of the sponsorship landscape is to look at the current Champions League suppliers. This showcases that the battle is, again, incredibly close. Adidas is on top with ten teams, followed by Puma and Nike with eight teams each.
Adidas will be clearly ahead of Nike with its new deals from the 25-26 season
However, the sponsorship landscape will soon shift. Adidas and Puma have and will sign many clubs with huge fan bases, while Nike is losing more and more. Adidas now sponsors Newcastle, Aston Villa, and, for 25-26, Liverpool and Club America. Puma now sponsors Galatasaray, the Red Bull sphere, and, soon, Portugal. Meanwhile, Nike has lost many teams, such as Galatasaray, Portugal, and, soon, Liverpool.
Adidas "Elite" teams from the 25-26 season
In terms of kit quality and design, Adidas seems to be ahead of Nike and Puma in the 24-25 season. Adidas' designs for elite teams have received mostly positive feedback, especially the third kit, which brought back the Trefoil logo. The most successful of these was the Juventus 24-25 Trefoil third kit, which totally sold out in a very short time.
Totally Sold Out - Juventus 24-25 Third Kit is the Most Popular Kit of the 24-25 Season?
Meanwhile, Nike's 'upside Swoosh' for the 24-25 third shirts received mainly negative reactions from fans.
Nike 24-25 Elite Teams Third Kits Released - Vertical Swoosh - No FC Barcelona
Puma's kits lack any innovations
As for Puma, the brand's 24-25 club kits cover the complete bandwidth from good to bad. Unfortunately, Puma's 24-25 kits lack any innovations, making them rather boring, in our opinion.
Football Boots
(picture via Soccer.com)Since the early 2020s, we have seen the contrasting faces of Adidas, Nike, and Puma in the football industry market. While Nike seems to have lost its football focus and has been constantly abandoning its stars, Adidas has come back strongly with the Predator 24 boots and young stars, while Puma is still showing its efforts to rise with new stars and dedicated investment in next-gen boot silos.
The return to the tongue brought the Predator to the top spot in the football boots landscape
While Nike used to dominate the football boots landscape this century, things have changed. Adidas' current football boot designs lead the market. Last year's Best Boot of 2023 poll showed that Adidas accounted for more than 50% of the 12 most beautiful boots (7/12), of which the top 5 boots were all Adidas.
Adidas Predator 30 Voted Best Football Boot of 2023
Adidas
For Adidas, the return of the iconic folding tongue to the Predator 24 was an unexpected success, helping fans quickly forget the overwhelming failure of its predecessor, the Predator Edge.
In the field of football boots, Adidas not only develops interesting new generations of football boots but, possibly more importantly, also focuses on the care and development of its top ambassadors.
Leo Messi, Jude Bellingham, and Lamine Yamal to Become Adidas 3 Main Football Athletes
In late 2024 and 2025, Adidas will release signature boots for five players: Leo Messi, Jude Bellingham, Lamine Yamal, Son Heung Min, and Mohamed Salah.
Adidas not only pays attention to and invests in current players but also maintains relationships with legends and famous retired players to promote and communicate their new shoe launch campaigns. Beckham's Predator came out this year, and Zidane will follow next year.
Recently, Adidas also launched the Predator 24 Beckham signature shoes - the first-ever Predators featuring the iconic Trefoil logo
Next-Gen Adidas Predator 2025 David Beckham Signature Boots Leaked
Exclusive: Adidas to Release Predator Zidane Boots in 2025
As well as players, Adidas has also worked with coaches such as Jose Mourinho to promote the Predator 24 boot earlier this year.
Nike
It was business as usual for Nike in the football boot department this season. The most notable of the 2024 releases so far have been the Mercurial x Air Max editions and the introduction of the 'Cosmic Speed' series. Bot bad for the Mercurials, but the other silos completely fall behind.
The return of the Total 90 could help Nike to get to a top position again
In terms of player sponsorship, Nike has terminated contracts with many players in the past few years. Only the contracts with key names such as Mbappe, Vinicius, and Haaland were extended/signed, while other deals were not extended. Having fewer players is part of Nike's cost-cutting policy.
It appears that Nike could get back on track in 2025. The brand brings back the Total 90 as a small-sided/lifestyle option, a move that has already been celebrated by many.
All Nike Players Who Left Brand in 2023
Overall, however, in terms of football shoes and player sponsorship, Nike falls behind Adidas.
Puma
Puma has been gaining a lot in the football boot market in recent years, but they came from a low level. The brand is showing its efforts to grow by investing in research and technology development for new shoe lines (so far Ultra 5, Future 7 & King Ultimate). They are also constantly signing new deals with well-known players to expand its coverage in the football footwear market.
The football boots market is still clearly dominated by Adidas and Nike
Puma's market share in the football boots market has more than doubled in recent years, but they are still well behind Adidas and Nike. It is said that there is approximately a 15%-45-45% market share between the three brands in Europe - 15% for Puma and 45% for Adidas and Nike each.
Footballs
In terms of ball market share, Puma is on the verge of becoming the leading ball maker with deals with the top European and global leagues. Puma will make the balls for the Premier League, La Liga, and Serie A, which all used to be supplied by Nike.
Puma Set to Become World's Leading Official Ball Maker
Premier League, La Liga, and Serie A: Puma will be the top leagues' ball maker
Although it does not sponsor as many leagues as Puma, Adidas is the ball supplier for the biggest tournaments: Champions League, Women's Champions League, World Cup, and Euro.
With Puma rising and Adidas supplying the most crucial international match balls, Nike is falling apart in this area. Nike is only left with the NWSL and the Brasileirão. It's a shame since Nike is the most innovative ball brand and has the best match balls for us.
Our Ranking: Adidas #1 - Nike #2 - Puma #3
With Nike weakening, Adidas is leading the power rankings in football for us. Despite the recent downsizing in football, Nike is still close to Adidas. Puma remains the clear number 3.
The Power Ranking of Other Brands
For the remaining brands, we start with an exemplary ranking of three brands: Macron, Hummel, and Castore. All three will be considered for football shirts only, as they are not into the field of football boots and balls really.
In terms of quantity and quality, we say Macron over Hummel over Castore.
In terms of quantity, Macron is the kit maker for the most clubs (7) in Europe's top leagues, followed by Hummel (5) and Castore (4).
In terms of quality and design, we rate Macron the highest - the brand gives one-of-a-kind kits to dozens, as well as smaller teams. Hummel comes behind, as the brand offers many great bespoke designs but not for as many teams as Macron. Castore is at the bottom of the table. The designs are fantastic for many teams, but the brand's kits suffer from quality issues, which are unacceptable in sports.
Do you agree with our football brand power rankings? Do you have a different opinion? Please comment below.