Dozens of staff at ManU's Megastore, including mascot Fred the Red, "are sweating over their futures" with the club's world-record £750M ($1.1B) kit deal about to kick in, according to Mike Keegan of the London DAILY MAIL. On July 31, Nike, which employs Fred and a number of other workers at the Old Trafford shop, will see its agreement with the club expire. A ManU source said, "All the staff are all worried sick about it. Some have left already because they can't wait. It's out of order. They are all good people who work in there, and a lot of them don't make much more than the minimum wage, and they can do without this. It seems as though Nike are using them as scapegoats because they have lost the rights to adidas." ManU is yet to make an official announcement about the Megastore after it "kept hold of the rights" as part of its huge deal with adidas. Most staff work in the store itself, "although many work in the warehouse behind it." A Nike spokesperson revealed that "talks were ongoing but failed to give any assurances" (DAILY MAIL, 4/16).
