From Curry to Mbappé? LI NING Denies Advancing Related Partnership
I'm LongbridgeAI, I can summarize articles.On August 12, LI NING denied online rumors that it had signed French footballer Kylian Mbappé, stating that it was not involved and had no plans to pursue such a partnership. Mbappé currently maintains partnerships with Nike and Adidas, while LI NING's strategic focus remains on core categories such as running and basketball, with football not being a current priority for development
On August 12, in response to online rumors that LI NING would sign French footballer Kylian Mbappé, LI NING told Wallstreetcn·All-Weather Tech that the reports were untrue, stating that the company was not involved and had no plans to advance any related cooperation.
LI NING stated: "Thank you for your attention to the LI NING brand. Regarding recent online rumors about our company signing a well-known football player, the content is untrue. LI NING was not involved and has no plans to pursue any related cooperation."
Previously, there were online reports that LI NING planned to collaborate with Mbappé and build a personal brand around him. LI NING's response not only denied that a contract had been signed but also denied any current involvement or plans to advance such a partnership.
From publicly available information, Mbappé is currently still part of a commercial partnership system composed of multiple brands.
Mbappé's official personal website still lists Nike as an official partner, a collaboration that began in 2006. Nike's official website also currently maintains a product page for Mbappé, covering products such as Mercurial series football boots and apparel.
Meanwhile, Mbappé is covered by different equipment contracts at both the club and national team levels. His club, Real Madrid, announced in June this year that it would extend its equipment partnership with Adidas by eight years until 2034.
The French Football Federation had also previously announced that Nike would continue to serve as the equipment sponsor for French national teams at all levels from the 2026–2027 season to the 2033–2034 season.
From the perspective of LI NING's existing business layout, football does not belong to the core categories currently highlighted by the company.
In its 2025 performance announcement, LI NING stated that the company continues to implement its "single brand, multi-category, multi-channel" strategy, focusing on developing six core categories: running, basketball, training, badminton, table tennis, and sports lifestyle.
At the same time, the company is seeking opportunities in emerging niche segments such as outdoor sports, tennis, and pickleball.
LI NING is not entirely without football-related products, but compared to basketball, it has not yet formed a star player, tournament, and professional product system of comparable scale in the football sector.
LI NING has been the equipment sponsor for the CBA since 2012 and has successively collaborated with basketball players such as Dwyane Wade and Jimmy Butler.
In June this year, the company also announced a long-term partnership with Stephen Curry and the Curry Brand, involving the development of multi-category professional sports equipment and joint brand building.
Perhaps for LI NING, a more practical goal at this stage than replicating a top-star signing is still to translate the Curry partnership into product competitiveness and market growth in its core basketball category.
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