German workwear and safety equipment firm Engelbert Strauss has signed on as a commercial partner of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Through a multi-year international deal announced today – marketing its first league-wide agreement with a US sports property – Strauss becomes the official workwear partner of the North American league.
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This will result, most prominently, in the Strauss name and logo being present across MLB batting helmets during the post-season, and during MLB games in Europe – the first brand to adorn helmets during the league's games on the continent.
The deal also gives Strauss marketing rights through MLB across Canada, Mexico, and Europe.
Post-season helmet logo placement will begin later this year, with the 2024 MLB post-season beginning in early October.
In addition, Minor League Baseball helmets will have the brand’s name and logo shown on them all season from 2025.
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By GlobalDataFinally, MLB and Strauss have created a digital content platform covering a particular aspect of the game, stolen bases. This will be presented by Strauss.
Noah Garden, deputy commissioner for business and media at MLB, said: “We are proud that STRAUSS selected Major League Baseball and Minor League Baseball as the marketing platform to introduce its brand to the U.S. market,”
Two MLB games have taken place in Europe this year, both in London in June between the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies.
Europe is considered a key growth and expansion market by the league’s hierarchy, although two games tentatively scheduled for Paris in 2025 have both had to be canceled after a failure to find a suitable promoter.
Elsewhere in US sports, Strauss is also a partner of American football’s NFL, in a deal announced last year and covering Germany and the UK.
Its most recent sports sponsorship saw it unveil a multi-year global partnership in late July with English soccer heavyweights Liverpool.
MLB, meanwhile, announced an expanded commercial deal with personal care product firm Church & Dwight late last month.
