After weeks of speculation, Borussia Dortmund has officially announced a new sponsor to be featured on their kit in the coming seasons. The British, multi-national telecommunications company, Vodaphone, will be featured on the BVB kits moving forward, and the Vodaphone logo will be featured in advertising around Signal Iduna Park.
Traditionally, Borussia Dortmund has had two separate sponsors for their club kits, one for their domestic campaign, and another for their European football. Chemical company, and long-time sponsor, Evonik, took a back seat a few years ago to telecoms group, 1&1, which took its place upon the team’s most prominent jerseys. Evonik, on the other hand, remained emblazoned on the UEFA Champions League cup kits. Now, it’s all changing.
This new, multi-million euro, multi-season deal with Vodaphone will see this company as the main shirt sponsor until the end of the 2029-2030 season, and it expected to feature on each of Borussia Dortmund’s new kits, while Evonik will be relegated to a smaller advertising role, and the 1&1 deal is expiring.
Although Vodaphone’s logo and name are traditionally written in red, the sponsor will be displayed instead in black on the Borussia Dortmund kits. After the deal was struck, Hans Jaochim Watzke offered his input:
"“BVB has competed in the Champions League every year for the past decade. Vodafone, in its field, has always played at a Champions League level. The fact that we’ve inspired such a renowned partner to join us during economically challenging times brings us great joy.”"Hans Jaochim Watzke
Borussia Dortmund and Vodaphone are also expected to launch a joint initiative to connect Vodaphone Customers and BVB supporters in a unique way.
Personally, from an aesthetic perspective, Vodaphone will look so much better than the blocky, 1&1 logo on the kits. Now, if the designers over at Puma can create a nice design, then we'lll akk have something to look forward to.