Champions League news including a new sponsorship deal with Gillette, and Mauricio Pochettino sharing the impact of last year’s defeat.
UEFA has reacted to their blunt Champions League final by signing a sponsorship deal with a company that creates razors.
Gillette signed a five-year global licensing deal that ends after the 2023/24 season. Spanish news site Máquina do Esporte reported that UEFA would earn between €30-€50m throughout the agreement, with Gillette becoming The Official Shaving Partner of the Champions League.
Gillette will create Champions League liveried shaving equipment, erect unique in-store advertising, and run competitions to give customers the chance to win tickets and merchandise.
The deal comes eight-months after Gillette tried to keep up with the Harry’s and Dollar Shave Clubs of the world by creating a #metoo style advertising campaign. The campaign focused on a new type of masculinity with men breaking up fights between boys and men stopping men from sexually abusing women in the street.
Actor and poker player, James Woods, and British TV host, Piers Morgan, both promised to boycott the company over the ad, with Morgan stating on Twitter, “Let boys be boys, and let men be men!”
Speaking in defence of the ad at the time, a Gillette spokesperson said they created the ad to reach out to younger consumers and to arrest a decline in market share. The Champions League broadcasts to more than 200 countries, and that’s a lot of young men.
Gillette joins the likes of Gazprom, Heineken, PepsiCo, Mastercard, Nissan, Santander, Expedia Group, and Sony Entertainment as Champions League sponsors – the best football tournament a man can get.
Gillette Barca snub
Gillette has the extra dough to pay the UEFA after ending their contract with La Liga champions, Barcelona.
News site Palco23 reported that Gillette refused to meet Barcelona’s demands. Audi and Lassa also failed to extend their deals beyond the 2018/19 season. The net result is a €15m loss in revenue for Barcelona. Not that it will bother the Catalan club. Last year, Forbes ranked Barcelona as the most efficient sponsorship machine in the world with $247m per annum coming through commercial agreements.
Mauricio Pochettino the hermit
Back to that blunt Champions League Final, and Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino has opened up about that painful defeat in an exclusive interview with the Daily Mail.
Defeat against Liverpool hit Pochettino so hard that he didn’t leave his home for ten days.
During his self-imposed sabbatical, Pochettino did speak with his Assistant Manager, Jesus Perez, daily, where the pair analysed every aspect of the defeat.
“We talked every day to find the reason,” Pochettino told the Mail. “It’s the small details that make the difference. It was difficult, the three weeks to prepare were unbelievable, and then you are massively disappointed in the way you lose.”
Despite falling behind after only two minutes, through a controversial penalty, Spurs controlled the play for large parts of the final against Liverpool without ever threatening the Liverpool goal. Given Liverpool’s incredible form throughout the year, it was a missed opportunity for Spurs, and that’s why it hit Pochettino so hard.
“We were better than Liverpool,” said Pochettino.
Spurs is a 20/1 shot at winning the 2019/20 Champions League.
Here are the rest of the odds.
Champions League Odds
Man City 4/1
Barcelona 11/2
Liverpool 7/1
Real Madrid 8/1
Juventus 9/1
PSG 10/1
