Zalando and the Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) have signed a five-year partnership shortly before the start of the men’s World Cup.
The Berlin-based online retailer will support the Belgian men’s (Red Devils), women’s (Red Flames) and youth national teams as a top premium partner until 2030, Zalando announced on Tuesday. Zalando wants to deepen the connection with local customers in an “emotional environment”.
“Football is one of the most influential cultural forces in Europe, and fashion and football have a long shared history,” said James Rothwell, senior vice president of marketing at Zalando. “This partnership supports our transformation into Europe’s leading sports and lifestyle destination. We are seeing steady growth in sports customers and brands on our platform. We look forward to becoming part of the cultural dialogue in Belgium, connecting fans with world-class content and creating exclusive moments for our customers.”
The fashion platform focuses on activities around the pitch, while the Red Devils and Flames will continue to appear at the games in jerseys from the Herzogenaurach sportswear company Adidas – the official supplier. Zalando, for example, wants to take advantage of the moment until the players change into their jerseys.
The “Arrival Moment” of the football professionals is to be transformed into a high-profile style event in which Zalando transfers the individually selected looks to its platform and customers can be inspired directly by the players’ styles.
In addition, a content studio will be set up in the Belgian Quarter in Seattle for the men’s World Cup this summer, which will take place in the USA, Mexico and Canada, which will be used for live episodes and various insights. Zalando’s branding will also be visible on tickets, LED boards, cam carpets and the interview back walls in the media areas.
To kick off the partnership, Zalando is launching the local campaign “The Devil is in all of us” with Belgian footballers such as Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Amadou Onana and Jérémy Doku.
“The partnership focuses on sport, fashion and self-expression,” said RBFA CEO Peter Willems. “Thanks to Zalando’s reach, we can reach our fans 365 days a year and take the Belgian football community to a new level together.”
