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Puma, along with Nike and Adidas, is one of the top three brands in the sports industry. The German company is renowned for manufacturing and designing sports apparel, boots and sports accessories with some of the top personalities sponsoring them.
It may come as a surprise to many, but the founders of Puma and Adidas were brothers. The Dassler brothers originally started their own company, before splitting up and following their separate paths to form Adidas and Puma. Both German companies are two leading brands in the 21st century and rivals to each other.
Despite being below Adidas and Nike in terms of global popularity and success, Puma is slowly rising in the market. Nike's loss in 2021 has been Puma's gain with many top footballers switching to Puma. Some of the top sports personalities like Lewis Hamilton, Usain Bolt, Sunil Chhetri and Virat Kohli have been associated with Puma in recent years.
On that note, let us take a look at
5 footballers sponsored by Puma right now
#5 Jan Oblak
Atletico Madrid shot-stopper Jan Oblak has arguably been the best goalkeeper in the world in recent years. The Slovenian goalie has been crucial to the success of Diego Simeone's team, playing an indispensable role. He has a kept a ridiculous number of clean-sheets - over 150 cleansheets in 319 appearances for the Spanish giants.
Blessed with superb shot-stopping techniques, Oblak is a towering presence between the posts for his team. His precise sense of positioning has helped him be in the right place at the right time. Moreover, his reach has helped him make some impossible saves during his seven-year tenure at Atletico.
Oblak has won the 'Zamora award' five times in La Liga and remains one of the best in business. The 28-year-old is an avid Puma user, with both his gloves and boots coming from Puma.
#4 Sergio Aguero
Since his arrival at Manchester City back in 2011, Sergio Aguero has etched his name in the history books. Undoubtedly, the Argentine will go down as one of the finest forwards to grace the Premier League. He has played a pivotal role in Manchester City's success over the last decade.
Aguero became Manchester City's record goalscorer before moving to Barcelona in the summer of 2021. For the Premier League giants, the 33-year-old has racked up a whopping 260 goals and 73 assists in 390 appearances.
He will always be remembered for his last-minute winner against QPR in a 3-2 win on the final day of the season. This led Manchester City to their first Premier League title in 44 years in the 2011-12 season.
#3 Antoine Griezmann
Another forward who is sponsored by Puma at the moment is Antoine Griezmann. The French forward is currently spending a loan spell at his former club Atletico Madrid from Barcelona. Griezmann was the talisman for Atletico under Diego Simeone's tutelage before his transfer to Barcelona in 2019.
Griezmann joined Barcelona with high hopes. However a disappointing two-year spell combined with the club's poor financial conditions saw him return to Atletico Madrid this summer. For Atletico, the 30-year-old has racked up 138 goals and 51 assists in 269 appearances so far.
Griezmann has been associated with Puma for more than a decade now, flaunting a wide variety of Puma boots over the years.
#2 Luis Suarez
Luis Suarez has established himself as one of the best strikers of the modern-era, earning the nickname El Pistolero for his exploits. The Uruguayan forward is truly a fox in the box, demonstrating his might during his time at Liverpool, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid.
Since moving from Liverpool to Barcelona, Suarez has won the European Golden Shoe twice. He led the Catalan giants to a plethora of trophies, which includes a continental treble.
Following his six-year tenure at the Nou Camp, Suarez opted to join Atletico Madrid last summer to guide them to a La Liga title. Despite not getting any younger, his 21 goals last campaign proved how important he was for Diego Simeone's team.
Suarez is another leading man for Puma, with the German brand making him the face of Puma Future 2.1
#1 Neymar
Following Neymar's move to Barcelona in 2013, the Brazilian has been world class in the truest sense. The forward has since shown the world his caliber to decide a match with his breathtaking abilities on the pitch.
Upon his arrival at Barcelona, Neymar formed a dangerous partnership with Lionel Messi and Suarez, known as 'MSN'. Barcelona's explosive front-three led them to a continental treble and domestic double. Neymar enjoyed a podium finish at the 2015 Ballon d'Or for his exploits.
To secure Neymar's services, PSG forked out an insane €222 million to make him the most expensive player of all time. Despite suffering from consistent injury issues, he helped the Parisian side win three Ligue 1 titles.
Neymar was a Nike user throughout but the fallout with Nike last year saw Puma secure the Brazilian as their sponsor.
