Nike Unveils Brazil's 2014 World Cup Kit Made From Recycled Plastic Bottles

Nike "launched a key battle in its war for shirt supremacy" when it unveiled the kit Brazil will wear to host the 2014 World Cup, according to Andrew Downie of REUTERS. Nike VP of Communications Charlie Brooks said that the Brazil shirt is Nike's top selling int'l jersey and the company will do $1B worth of business in the South American country this year. Nike "expects Brazil to be its third largest market in the world by 2017, behind only the United States and China." Nike and adidas "are battling over supremacy" in the €5B ($6.7B) football kit market. Nike is "already celebrating an early victory in the kit war, as the supplier to 10 of the tournament finalists" (REUTERS, 11/24). Each kit is made from approximately 18 recycled plastic bottles. Since '10, Nike has diverted nearly 2 billion bottles from landfills (Nike).