I AM the Football Star-Chapter 637 - 166: Europa League Knockout Round First Leg, Taking on Porto Head-On

Do players in the Five Major Leagues have shoe contracts?

Not necessarily!

How about that, surprised?

But that's just how it is during this period.

Some young players even need the club to provide their shoes.

Even slightly talented players at most sign an unequal usage agreement with giants like Ah Ke or Nike. The other side provides professional shoes for free, but they have to bear a certain amount of penalty.

Kaint is not a supernova, his flaws are very obvious, and he isn't worth a dime in scouts' eyes.

Unexpectedly, shoe sellers also have scouts, and it's said they are even more professional than most club scouts.

They consider various aspects such as player strength, potential, playing style, personal image, and field position to predict a player's career, thereby judging how many shoes that player can help them sell and how much influence they can expand.

And Kaint...

One meter sixty-eight, ugly to the point of being cute.

So black it's unattractive like a lump of coal.

Not good at dribbling, passing, or shooting; his goal highlights never feature him, yet he always becomes the background.

Positioned defensive, looking harmless yet...

What can you let the sports brand companies do?

Want to create a tough guy?

Look at that cute black face, can you bear it?

Want to create a football genius?

The collection of misplaced passes and missed shots is enough to make Barça's heart skip a beat more than when they see Dembele and Braithwaite.

Even though he has both French and Malian nationality.

But what developing value does Mali have?

And France's sports brand market is already mature, if they sign anyone, it'll be a superstar, not a promising rookie.

Therefore, even though Kaint played to a major rotation position in the world's sixth, oh no... fifth largest league, Ligue 1, the number of endorsements on Kaint is still frighteningly small.

Despite being a young star, Kaint is only two or three years older than people like Sogel, Parrot, Boe, so calling him a star isn't really a stretch. But in terms of endorsements, compared to these people, it's absolutely a case of those who hear it weep, and those who see it grieve.

"How much endorsement fee did HXLT give you?" Morici immediately knew Lu Yang wanted to bluff Kaint into signing with HXLT, and couldn't help but tease Lu Yang.

In fact, everyone knew about Lu Yang's endorsement fee.

It's outrageously high, and it once sparked widespread controversy.

"Endorsement fees are just one aspect." Lu Yang smiled slightly, "After I helped Italy advance to the European Cup, HXLT's sales in Europe skyrocketed. As a return, and to counter Ah Ke and Nike's new round of poaching, HXLT agreed to let me purchase a part of their shares at a relatively low price, roughly ten to twenty percent."

Lu Yang was quite reserved, as this investment consumed a certain amount of his cash.

He had great plans for those shares in the future, so he specifically negotiated with HXLT several times before finalizing.

But none of the people present could hold it together.

Ten to twenty percent?

HXLT?

Damn! 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Forget playing football!

HXLT is now a moderate-sized sports brand in Europe.

Although to enter the market initially, their pricing was low, and they never quite raised their profile, but they're making a decent profit.

Personal earnings can't be compared to corporate earnings.

An individual earning a million a year is a successful person, earning ten million a year is over the top.

But corporate revenues always involve billions.

After becoming a shareholder of HXLT, Lu Yang could retire right now without ever worrying about food and drink for the rest of his life, entering the stage of financial freedom early.

Everyone felt bitter.

Even a legendary level player like Sotu tearily asked, "Is it too late for me to raise your flag before and after the next match? Pure red! Without playing with Italy on the other side?"

Lu Yang thought for a moment: "First of all, you must have Chinese blood, we value that a lot."

Sotu said, "My grandmother once took a photo with a Chinese exchange student, does that count?"

Lu Yang replied awkwardly but politely, "What do you think?"

At this time, Morici also flatteringly asked, "Um, without blood ties, is there a way?"

See? The attraction of the Chinese market is just that strong.

Lu Yang patted Morici's head: "Yours is easy to solve. In the future, we each go our own way, ensuring you become immensely popular all over China, with endorsements pouring in!"

Morici was puzzled: "What do you mean go our own way?"

Lu Yang said: "It's that I call you brother, you call me dad! Recognize me as your father, and you'll become a football superstar in China with only less notoriety than mine!"

Morici took a long time to realize Lu Yang was taking advantage of him.

Kaint's issue was ultimately resolved with Lu Yang's proposed solution for a targeted approach.

That night, Lu Yang quickly contacted the HXLT design department to request a study of Kaint's foot shape.

HXLT's design team is quite serious, scientific shoemaking being their main development direction going forward.

The exclusive version of the Hunting Blade series shoes provided to Lu Yang was custom-made based on his foot shape, differing from both the fan and player versions.

Therefore, custom-making for Kaint was right up their alley.

After their team arrived, they spent an entire day collecting Kaint's foot and movement data.

Then they used the Hunting Blade shoe design to custom-make a few pairs for Kaint.

The proportion between the shoe's sole and heel differs completely from regular shoes, looking somewhat uncoordinated, which is the second biggest feature of these shoes.

And the biggest feature of these shoes is—hard!