Italian Serie A football club Juventus has agreed a three-year deal that will make Japanese video games developer Cygames its first back-of-shirt sponsor.
Cygames is part of the CyberAgent group, which is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq stock market in New York.
Its Shadowverse title is one of the most popular mobile games in Japan, with a total of 10 million downloads, and will be launched in Italian on July 31.
The Cygames logo will make its debut on the Juventus shirt in the United States, with the Serie A champion set to face Barcelona at New York’s Metlife Stadium on Saturday in its first match in this season’s International Champions Cup.
The Cygames brand will appear on Juventus shirts for all domestic games and friendly matches. “This is a significant milestone for Juventus with a sponsor now appearing on the back of its shirts for the very first time,” Giorgio Ricci, co-chief revenue officer and head of global partnerships and corporate revenues at Juventus, said.
“This is a strategic partnership for Juventus, because it allows the club to penetrate the Japanese market and strengthen its standing in Asia. The fact that Cygames is a leading company in the entertainment sector demonstrates the close proximity between Juventus’ image and experience-based assets.”