Nike Continues Serie A Drop-Off As Adidas Becomes Largest Kit Sponsor In Italian Soccer For 2025/26

Nike has seen a huge drop-off in kit sponsors for Serie A sides in recent years, while Adidas has taken a huge leap for the upcoming 2025/26 season – but what has caused this shift in Italian soccer?

Serie A 2025/26 Kit Sponsors

Serie A is renowned for being one of the most iconic leagues in soccer history, boasting some of the greatest players of all-time and creating dominant teams across multiple eras.

The likes of Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo, Alessandro Del Piero and many more have spent time in Italy’s leading soccer division and captivated a whole generation.

Alongside having the ability to attract the best players in the world, Serie A has also become synonymous with producing some of the most iconic kits in soccer history.

The blue and black of Inter Milan is worn across the world, the red and black of AC Milan has also become a mainstay in street wear clothing, while Juventus, Napoli and many more have also seen kit sales sky-rocket.

Clubs across Serie A have recognised this and are continuing to release kits with more personality, which has been clear in the build-up to the 2025/26 season.

The key to any kit is the sporting brand that is behind its creation and Adidas have asserted their dominance in the market for the season, securing a sponsorship deal with four different sides – the most in Serie A.

Juventus, Como, Pisa and Roma will all don the three stripes this season, with the former recently agreeing a new deal in collaboration with Adidas that runs until 2037.

Roma will be in for a host of change for the 2025/26 campaign, with Gian Piero Gasperini taking the reins, new stadium plans taking another step to reality and the Giallorossi will be also be playing as an ‘elite’ Adidas side after earning a promotion from the ‘B tier’.

Just behind the German sport brand is Puma, who will be the leading kit sponsor for Sassuolo, Parma and AC Milan after agreeing one of the biggest sponsorship deals with the Rossoneri in Serie A history.

Multiple brands will be producing kits for two teams this season, with Macro working alongside Bologna and Udinese, Kappa creating jerseys for Genoa and Fiorentina, while Joma continue their sponsorship’s with Torino and Hellas Verona.

One of the more interesting collaborations in recent years is the deal between Napoli and fashion brand, Emporio Armani, as the Serie A champions moved away from Kappa in 2021.

The Serie A champions have seen huge success since making this move, winning two league titles and achieving a huge boost in kit sales across the world.

Now onto the sporting brands with just the one Serie A relationship, Atalanta will play in a New Balance creation for the first-time after leaving Joma, Mizuno is the leading kit sponsor for Lazio, Cremonese will work alongside Acerbis, Cagliari’s kit will be produced by Eye Sport and Lecce continue to produce kits through their own in-house brand.

However, the final and most interesting brand that only has one team to their name is Nike, as the iconic company will produce the Inter Milan kit once again – but why has such a big organization only obtained one sponsorship deal?

 

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Why Is Nike Not Popular In Serie A Anymore?

Nike was once regarded as a powerhouse in Italian soccer, being the main kit sponsor for multiple teams in a variety of generations, but this has dwindled in recent years.

The popular sports brand was the main kit sponsor for Juventus between 2003 and 2015 before the Old Lady switched to Adidas, Nike was the leading sponsor for Roma between 2014 and 2021, the company sponsored Napoli for three seasons (1997-2000), doing the same for Hellas Verona from 2013 to 2018 and Atalanta between 2015-2017.

It’s longest standing relationship is now it’s only sponsorship deal in Italy, being the leading kit manufacturer for Inter Milan since 1998 and keeping this collaboration ever since.

The relationship is set to continue for the 2025/26 season, as Cristian Chivu looks forward to his first full-season as manager and the Inter boss has already received huge praise from the likes of Pio Esposito ahead of the upcoming campaign.

Working with Nike may help Chivu as the Nerazzurri have achieved monumental success with the sportswear company, winning eight Serie A titles, seven Supercoppa Italia trophies, six Coppa Italia’s, one Champions League and one FIFA Club World Cup.

Achieving this level of success will only be a positive outcome for Nike, which does beg the question of why the company does not try to replicate this with other teams.

Nike’s reasoning for only having one team in Italy is not simply down to an individual reason, however, the sports company appears to be focusing on just elite teams in soccer.

Barcelona, PSG, Chelsea, Tottenham and Atletico Madrid are all under Nike’s collaboration deal, leaving the company to move away from so-called ‘lesser’ sides in Europe.

Another reason is the rise in popularity from other brands like Adidas, New Balance and Puma, who are now able to compete with Nike by offering teams substantial deals.