UFC Star Israel Adesanya Signs With Puma

Peter Verry
·2 min read

UFC star Israel Adesanya is now a Puma ambassador.

The undefeated middleweight champion, who is set to put his 19-0 record and belt on the line Sept. 26 against Paulo Costa, revealed on social media today that he is now a Puma-backed athlete. The news was first reported by ESPN MMA insider Ariel Helwani.

Shortly after Adesanya tweeted a post sharing the announcement, Puma replied: “Welcome to the fam.”

Terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

Puma has been active as of late with signing major sports stars. Aside from Adesanya, the German athletic powerhouse announced it added soccer star Neymar Jr. to its roster on Sept. 12. The signing confirmed speculation that circulated in late August that he was leaving Nike, his longtime sponsor, for Puma.

Puma’s addition of Adesanya comes two months after the UFC stated it was parting ways with the organization’s apparel and footwear sponsor, Reebok. Once the Reebok deal is up in March 2021, Venum will take over.

Aside from venturing into new sports with Adesanya in MMA, Puma has spent the last few years bolstering its ambassador roster with athletes in several sports, most notably basketball with the signings of RJ Barrett, Kyle Kuzma, DeMarcus Cousins, Michael Porter Jr., Deandre Ayton and several others. The brand announced it was reentering the category in June 2018 after 20 years away from the sport.

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