09.11.2005

Cologne, 9 November 2005. With the launch of the new DFB jersey of the German national football team KarstadtSport and adidas are starting a so far unique fan campaign with regards to the FIFA World Cup 2006T. Under the motto "Now the fans are giving their autographs" all fans of the German team can show their support for the team of Jürgen Klinsmann by putting their autographs on a giant jersey.

Today Herbert Hainer, Chairman of the Management Board of adidas-Salomon AG, and Helmut Klier, Board Member of the Sports Division of Karstadt Warenhaus AG, officially started the fan campaign in the Cologne Cinedom, where the new World Cup jersey of the German team was presented to the public. The captain of the national team, Michael Ballack, was the first professional footballer to sign the jersey which will accompany the German team to the warm up games and the FIFA World Cup 2006T, and which will be rolled out by the official DFB fan club in the fan stand before the game starts.

For the fans the campaign starts on 12 November, on the day the new jersey will also be available at KarstadtSport. And this is how the campaign works: the fans put their signature on a special card, and their autograph is then scanned and transferred onto the giant jersey by adidas. The entry forms are only available from KarstadtSport stores and selected sports departments of Karstadt department stores. The campaign runs until 8 December 2005. Fans who participate in the campaign with their autograph will automatically enter a competition in which they can win one of five pairs of tickets for a FIFA World Cup 2006T match.

The joint fan campaign is part of another strategic partnership of KarstadtSport and adidas. On 12 November 2005 adidas will open exclusive adidas DFB shops in all KarstadtSport branches at the 12 World Cup locations. Another 40 shops are to open in KarstadtSport stores in March 2006.

General information on KarstadtSport: With a net turnover of €505 million in the 2004 financial year KarstadtSport is the number one sports retailer in Germany. On a sales area of more than 217,000 square metres (this equals a space of 29 football fields) a comprehensive sports range is offered. This includes 33 specialised sports stores and sports markets, the sports departments in the department stores, and the online shop of karstadt.de.

Press contact:
Karstadt Warenhaus AG
Press Officer
Michael Scheibe
Phone: +49 - (0)201 / 727-2124