Man United buys out DHL training kit deal

MANCHESTER United has struck a deal with logistics firm DHL to buy back the rights to its training kit sponsorship.

In a statement the club said it believes it can secure a better deal.

The initial DHL agreement – worth £10m a year – underlined the the club’s commercial might and was the first training kit partnership outside traditional kit  sponsorship deals.

The club said: “We have successfully negotiated an early buy-out of our training kit agreement with DHL effective 30 June 2013. DHL will then continue as our global logistics sponsor.

“The significantly increased value of agreements concluded since entering into this agreement, such as our recent $559m world record shirt sponsorship with General Motors, leads us to believe that there should be strategic opportunities to further optimise the value of these rights.”

The General Motors deal, which begins in 2014, is likely to be followed with a new kit supply partnership as the existing long-term agreement with Nike, is due to expire in 2015.