Uhlsport
Uhlsport GmbH is a German sporting goods manufacturer. Originally established in 1948 as "Haase & Uhl OHG" and later renamed "Karl Uhl GmbH", the company became "uhlsport GmbH" in 1994. It is an international company which has its permanent headquarters in Balingen in Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
Private | |
Industry | Sport, Textile |
Founded | 1948 |
Founder | Karl Uhl[1] |
Headquarters | , |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Dominik Solleder, Melanie Steinhilber (Managing Directors) |
Products | List
|
Brands | List
|
Revenue | ca. 67 million euros (2017) |
Number of employees | 243 (2018) |
Website | uhlsportcompany.com |
The company manufactures and distributes its products through the brands Uhlsport, Kempa, Spalding and BLK.
History
The company was founded in 1948 by Karl Uhl. Early production focussed on the manufacture of leather studs for football boots, and in 1953 uhlsport also began to produce football boot soles for sports shoe manufacturers.[1] In the years which followed more products were added, including shin guards, sports bandages, footballs and goalkeeper gloves, until finally uhlsport GmbH had developed a full range of football equipment. Since 2002, the company has been operating a multi-brand strategy for football, handball, and basketball.
Copyright violation and using Nike designs
In 2019, Uhlsport used Nike designs for Iranian clubs' kit.[3] The company had previously announced that its designs were proprietary and special.[4][5]
Brands and products
The brand "uhlsport" specialises in football, especially goalkeeper equipment.[6] Since 2002, handball equipment has been marketed through the company's own "Kempa" brand, and uhlsport GmbH also owns the European distribution rights to the American basketball brand Spalding, a division of Russell Brands, LLC which produces balls for a wide range of sports such as association and American football, basketball, baseball, volleyball.
Another brand of the group is BLK, an Australian company that focuses mainly focuses on apparel for rugby union and league.[7]
The German company operates an indirect distribution strategy with subsidiaries in France, Spain, and Sweden and with country managers in UK, Benelux, and Switzerland. Uhlsport has a further 80 distribution partners across the world. In 1998, the company was sold by the Uhl family to the Daiss family.
Sponsorship
Uhlsport is the official equipment supplier to Fortuna Düsseldorf, SSV Reutlingen 05,[8] 1. FC Magdeburg,[9] Corona Braşov, FC Avanhard Kramatorsk, Chernomorets Odessa and the Women's Bundesliga team VfL Sindelfingen.[10] As official ball sponsor uhlsport supports the French Ligue 1 and the French Ligue 2.[11] The goalkeepers Hugo Lloris, Danijel Subasic, Lukas Hradecky, Ron-Robert Zieler, and others play with uhlsport gloves.[12]
Football
National teams
Europe
Asia
Non-national representative teams
Europe
Club teams
Africa
NA Hussein Dey Aswan El Entag El Harby Haras El Hodoud Petrojet Suez Tanta Tersana Ulinzi Stars AS FAR RSB CRA FUS Olympique Khouribga Coastal Union Simba Young Africans US Ben Guerdane
Americas
Villa San Carlos Coquimbo Unido Deportivo Táchira Zulia FC Zamora FC Club Petrolero
Asia
Manama Chennai City F.C. Esteghlal Tehran Foolad Khozestan Persepolis Shahin Shahrdari Bushehr Sepahan Esfahan Padideh Pars Jonoubi Jam Al-Minaa Al-Shabab FELCRA Fanja Al-Nahda Al-Oruba Sur Al-Suwaiq Najran Dibba Emirates
Europe
Bylis Dinamo Tirana Laçi Kastrioti Kamza Teuta Tirana Vllaznia Royal Excel Mouscron Beroe Stara Zagora Botev Plovdiv Cherno More Varna Lokomotiv Plovdiv Viktoria Žižkov Silkeborg Chippenham Town Sillamäe Kalev TJK Legion Fortuna Düsseldorf FC Kaiserslautern FC Köln FC Magdeburg SSV Reutlingen SSV Ulm Stuttgarter Kickers Stjarnan Galway United Trepça'89 Liria Ballymena United Dungannon Swifts Warrenpoint Town Whitehead Eagles Stenhousemuir AFC Nové Mesto nad Váhom Spartak Myjava UE Sant Andreu Åtvidabergs Erzurumspor Alanyaspor Altay Boluspor Erbaaspor Orduspor Merthyr Town
Associations
Uhlsport is the official supplier for the following leagues and associations:
Ligue 1 Ligue 2 Girabola (Referees) BFRA (Referees) Kenyan Premier League NIFL Premiership Iran
Volleyball
Al Ain Al Shorta Zahra Club Aluminium Al-Mahdi Hormozgan
Handball
Club teams
SC Magdeburg HC Leipzig Buxtehuder SV TuS Metzingen RK Metalurg Skopje Vive Targi Kielce CSM București (women's) SCM Râmnicu Vâlcea (women's) SCM Craiova (women's) Corona Brașov (women's) Gloria Bistrița (women's) Dunărea Brăila (women's) Gloria Buzău (women's) Dinamo București CSM București HC Dobrogea Sud Constanța Politehnica Timișoara CSM Bacău HC Buzău CSM Făgăraș BM Granollers Alingsås HK
Bibliography
- Ralf Schmeckenbecher: Die Fussballmarke Uhlsport: Markenpositionierung in Deutschland (English: "The uhlsport football brand. Brand positioning in Germany"). 1998
References
- Uhlsport history
- Ulhsport products
- نیوز, اخبار روز ایران و جهان | آفتاب (2019-08-22). "لباس جدید پرسپولیس کپی از لباس تاتنهام؟+عکس". AftabNews (in Persian). Retrieved 2019-08-22.
- "بیانیه آل اشپورت در مورد لباس تیمها؛وقت نداشتیم طراحی کنیم!". خبرآنلاین (in Persian). 2019-08-22. Retrieved 2019-08-22.
- "پیراهن جدید پرسپولیس کپی از لباس تاتنهام؟/عکس". پایگاه خبری جماران - امام خمینی - انقلاب اسلامی (in Persian). Retrieved 2019-08-22.
- Maarten Arts: The Soccer Goalkeeper Coach. Reedswain Inc., 2004, p. 213
- Our story on BLK website
- uhlsport GmbH: Sponsoring SSV Reutlingen. 2013
- uhlsport GmbH: Sponsoring 1. FC Magdeburg. 2013
- "Sponsoren : Offizieller Sportausstatter". VfL Sindelfingen 1862 e.V. Abteilung Frauenfußball. o.J. Retrieved 2013-09-24. Check date values in:
|date=
(help) - uhlsport GmbH: Official Matchball Ligue 2 Archived 2013-11-11 at the Wayback Machine. 2013
- uhlsport GmbH Sponsoring goalkeepers. 2018