Juventus' latest buy Cristiano Ronaldo has not even set foot on the football pitch in its colours, the bet has paid off as the Italian club sold merchandise that is over half of the transfer value it paid to the Portuguese striker.
On the very first day when the CR7 jersey went on sale, Juventus sold 520,000 of them. Adidas, which is the official merchandising partner of the Turin-based club, sold 20,000 jerseys from its store within hours, Italian media reported. About 500,000 jerseys were bought online.
In contrast, in the year 2016, Juventus sold total 850,000 jerseys, the number which is expected to be eclipsed soon.
Even though Ronaldo's shirt sale accounted for half his transfer fee, the Turin-based club might receive only 10 to 15 percent of the revenue generated, meaning Juventus will probably make around Rs 63 crore from the initial round of sale.
Also Read: Why Fiat Chrysler workers are furious over Juventus signing Cristiano Ronaldo
Every authentic Juventus shirt sells for 104 euros, while a replica is about 45 euros. Since the online and offline sales can be considered authentic as they were from official portals, Juventus earned 54 million euros on the very first day of the jersey sale.
Also Read: Cristiano Ronaldo to make Rs 970 crore in 4 years following move to Juventus
In 2016, Juventus penned a six-year extension with Adidas that made the German sports apparel brand official jersey partner of the Serie A club for GBP 20 million.
With the latest deal, Adidas will provide official kits to the first team and reserve teams plus other training gear up till 2022. In return, Adidas can sell official clubs jerseys through their channels.
Juventus bought the former Real Madrid player after agreeing to pay 100 million euro transfer fee. The Serie A giants will also pay Ronaldo 120 million euros over four years. Moreover, as per FIFA regulation, the club will also spend 12 million euros in ‘additional costs’. So in total, the player is set to cost Juventus a total of 232 million euro over four years.
The transfer fee was the highest ever for a player over 30 years old and the highest ever paid by an Italian club. The salary which Ronaldo will receive also makes him the third highest paid footballer in the world after Paris Saint-Germain's Neymar who brings in 708,000 euros (Rs 5.7 crore) and his eternal rival Lionel Messi who became the highest paid footballer after signing a new deal with Barcelona last November.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
