Christian Pulisic has decided to make a big-money move, although he’s not going to leave Premier League giants Chelsea any time soon. Puma announced on Monday morning that the USMNT star, who has worn Nike throughout his professional career up to this point, opted to leave his old brand and hop on board with the company that includes Neymar and Antoine Griezmann among its vast roster of footballers.
“Puma just fit in with exactly the message that I want to send,” Pulisic told Complex Sports in an interview about his decision. “I think we’re trying to inspire players just to get out and play any way they can and play the game and grow the game of soccer in America. And it lined up exactly with what I was feeling and it just seemed like a perfect fit.”
While Pulisic is not in line to get a signature boot from the company — well, not yet, at least — Puma and French designer Silni teamed up to make him a customized pair of ULTRA 1.3 boots that he will wear on August 11 when the Blues take on Villarreal in the Super Cup.
Christian Pulisic has signed a long-term deal with PUMA ⚽️
The USMNT superstar will debut a custom pair of PUMA’s new ULTRA 1.3 in the Super Cup Final on August 11th. pic.twitter.com/LjB03TLPLJ
— Front Office Sports (@FOS) August 9, 2021
The decision to join Puma comes on the heels of Pulisic wrapping up second season in the Premier League. He scored six goals and assisted on four more in nearly 2,500 minutes across all competitions, but managed to carve out a role as an important member of Chelsea’s squad despite it adding two high-profile attacking players during the transfer window. In the last few months, Pulisic has managed to get a pair of trophies with club and country, winning the Champions League with Chelsea before taking home the inaugural Nations League with the United States men’s national team.
