Castore, the UK sportswear brand, has moved further into motor racing by concluding a three-year commercial deal covering the iconic 24 Hours of Le Mans race.
Brokered by IMG, the international sports and entertainment agency which holds Le Mans licensing rights until after the 2024 race, the deal will see Castore supply official Le Mans outfits for the 2022, 2023 and 2024 editions of the French event.
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All officials and staff associated with Le Mans will wear Castore-made apparel before, during and after the races.
The Automobile Club l’Ouest (ACO), the race’s organising body, has said it is “proud to be collaborating with a brand that creates garments of unparalleled quality and design.”
Pascal Lafitte, Castore’s director of partnerships, said: "We are looking forward to building a relationship with the Automobile Club de l’Ouest in the next few years, with campaigns that reflect the iconic status of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.”
Stéphane Andriolo, director of clients and events at the ACO, added: “We are delighted to be associated with this rapid-growth brand whose premium performance wear is attracting attention in sporting circles around the world.”
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By GlobalDataIMG, which first became ACO’s licensing partner in 2008, has built up a portfolio of over 80 licensees for the annual event, which has been running since 1923, and has said it anticipates the centenary edition, in two years’ time, “opening up further development opportunities for key categories including apparel, toys and games, collectibles, homeware, and accessories.”
This year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans took place across 21 and 22 August.
Castore, meanwhile, first made an entry into the world of motor racing sponsorship earlier this year, when it entered into a multi-year deal with Formula 1 team McLaren.
From the 2022 season, Castore will become McLaren’s official team apparel and sportswear partner.
The Formula 1 outfit have been without a traditional kit supplier for several seasons and have designed their apparel in-house.
Castore first broke into sport in January 2019 when it signed up Scottish tennis heavyweight Andy Murray in a kit supply deal. A year later, it became the kit supplier of the West Indies cricket team in a three-year arrangement.
Last year, the brand focused on soccer, signing a deal with Scottish club Rangers, which began earlier this summer, and, as revealed by GlobalData Sport last year, has also launched in England's Premier League with Newcastle United and Wolverhampton Wanderers from the start of this season. It is also understood to have recently agreed to a deal with Italy’s Lazio.
Outside of soccer, Castore signed a kit supply deal in November with Saracens, one of England’s leading rugby union clubs, and athlete partnerships with a range of English sporting stars, including Adam Peaty (swimming), Jos Buttler (cricket) and Owen Farrell (rugby union).
