BOSTON, MA - The Boston Celtics today announced a multi-year sponsorship agreement with Canton, MA-based Reebok International Ltd. This synergistic deal connects two of the most well-known brands in sports that will combine forces on a variety of projects. Highlighting the partnership is Reebok's title
sponsorship of the annual NBA professional summer league exhibition series hosted by the Celtics, now known as the Reebok Pro Summer League. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Reebok is a tremendous company, highly respected both in the sports industry as well as in our community," said Celtics Executive Vice President of Marketing John Brody. "We are proud to have Reebok as a member of the Celtics family."
This multi-year partnership will enable the Celtics and Reebok to partner on a variety of strategic marketing, promotional, advertising, branding and community relations initiatives to enhance the Celtics experience for the team's fans, while reinforcing the Reebok brand to a key audience. With a stable of NBA superstars, combined with the company's status as the exclusive NBA-licensee, Reebok has developed a strong standing in the business of basketball, which will be greatly enhanced by the Celtics partnership.
This arrangement will enable Reebok to collaborate with the Celtics on a variety of initiatives to assist their shared "home town". Both organizations are well-known
for their significant presence in the community and for devoting time, effort and resources to a variety of causes and programs, many of which include reaching out to children to encourage and reward effort and success in the classroom.
The deal with the Celtics is a natural evolution of Reebok's current long-term strategic partnership with the NBA to design, manufacture, sell and market licensed merchandise for the NBA, the WNBA and the NBDL, the NBA's minor league. Currently producing on and off court apparel for 19 NBA teams, Reebok becomes exclusive with the NBA and its 30 teams beginning with the 2004-05 season. Reebok also utilizes many of the NBA's extensive marketing platforms to market NBA products, Reebok footwear and the Reebok brand, including the exclusive NBA Footwear Collection by Reebok and NBA Fusion, Reebok's collection of NBA-branded apparel launching this fall that is designed to meet the everyday needs of the NBA athlete's activities on and off the court.
"Reebok is proud and excited about our new partnership with the Boston Celtics," says John Lynch, Reebok's vice president of sports and entertainment marketing. "We believe this is an excellent opportunity for Reebok to expand in the world of basketball, as it gives us recognition on both a national and community level. To bring a new dimension to our long-term agreement with the NBA, it was a natural fit for Reebok to join forces with our home-town NBA team."
Reebok International Ltd. (NYSE: RBK), headquartered in Canton, MA, is a leading worldwide designer, marketer and distributor of sports, fitness and casual footwear, apparel and equipment under the Reebok, Rockport, and Greg Norman Brands and footwear under the Polo Ralph Lauren Brand. Sales for 2002 totaled approximately $3.1 billion. Reebok can be accessed on the World Wide Web at https://www.reebok.com/.