Indian men's football team captain Sunil Chhetri has signed a three-year deal with PUMA.
The Bengaluru FC skipper is currently the second-highest goal-scorer in international football after Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo.
"I am excited to join the PUMA family. Over the years, I have closely witnessed and experienced the brand's football heritage. Now signing with them as a PUMA player is a very natural progression for me," Sunil Chhetri said in an official statement.
"We share a common goal to accelerate the growth of football in the country. I appreciate their commitment to the sporting ecosystem and look forward to creating a new chapter for Indian football," he added.
With this deal, Chhetri has now joined the list of global players like France's Antoine Griezmann, Belgium's Romelu Lukaku, Uruguay's Luis Suarez and Argentina's Sergio Aguero among others.
Chhetri is the most-capped Indian player and is also the all-time top goal scorer for the Indian team. He has been named as the AIFF Player of the Year six times. He was also conferred with the Arjuna award in 2011 and Padma Shri in 2019.
"Sunil Chhetri is synonymous with football. A living legend and an inspiration for the youth, he has made a huge impact to grow the sport and its following in India. His passion is very much in line with PUMA's vision. Together, we are invested in growing the culture of football, inspiring and achieving new levels in the game," Abhishek Ganguly, Managing Director, PUMA India said.
In the past, the brand has teamed up with sportspersons like Virat Kohli, MC Mary Kom and Dutee Chand, and footballers like Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Dheeraj Singh Moirangthe, Nishu Kumar and Rahul Bheke.
( With inputs from ANI )