Premier League club Stoke City and 2nd Bundesliga side St. Pauli agreed to a "long-term cooperation," according to Stephan Uersfeld of ESPN.com. The "strategic partnership" will be the "first of its kind between a German and a Premier League club, and is set to expand beyond sports," with St. Pauli saying on its official website that the two sides also agreed to a partnership in "marketing, merchandising and media." St. Pauli CEO Andreas Rettig, a former German Football League (DFL) exec, said, "We hope for added value in sport through advantages of Stoke City's worldwide scouting, but also in mode of practice, training of coaches and academy work." St. Pauli, based in Hamburg's Reeperbahn district, has "won a unique reputation for being anti-establishment." Using all modern marketing channels, it has "established a cult following" with its "iconic" skull-and-crossbones logo. The two clubs will meet in a friendly at St. Pauli's Millerntorstadion in Hamburg on Aug. 1 (ESPN.com, 7/12).
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2nd Bundesliga side St. Pauli alternate logo.
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