Mark King, Adidas North America President, and Don Garber, Major League Soccer Commissioner, announce partnership extension (Photo by Keith Furman / FrontRowSoccer.com)

PORTLAND – adidas and Major League Soccer Wednesday announced the extension of their long-term partnership through 2024.

Marking adidas’ largest investment in soccer in North America, the six-year deal makes adidas the official supplier partner for the league, its clubs, MLS youth academies and youth affiliated clubs.

Forbes reported that the deal was worth $700 million.

Key to the agreement is an expanded focus on youth development to drive creativity in sports for young athletes. Financial terms of the agreement will not be disclosed.

“Sport is the epicenter of our culture and, in the U.S. and Canada, soccer is the most popular sport for young people to play,” adidas North America President Mark King said in a statement “Our partnership with MLS puts adidas at the core of sport in North America, allowing us to make a positive difference in an athlete’s game and life. Built from athlete and consumer insight, we are looking to create the future of sport and bring new and different things to the game the world has never seen before.”

adidas will outfit MLS teams and their affiliates with uniforms, footwear, training gear and sideline apparel. In addition to world-class innovation and design in apparel and footwear, adidas will provide the league’s official match ball.

“Major League Soccer has built a legacy with adidas that has been essential in the rise of our League,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said in a press release. “adidas has been a major collaborator with us since the inception of MLS, and we are proud that our partnership with this globally-respected brand will continue to enhance the growth of the game in North America for many more years. We will work with adidas on innovative concepts to showcase the sport and our elite athletes, and we will intensify our mission to develop top North American soccer players for generations to come.”

Front Row Soccer editor Michael Lewis has covered 13 World Cups (eight men, five women), seven Olympics and 25 MLS Cups. He has written about New York City FC, New York Cosmos, the New York Red Bulls and both U.S. national teams for Newsday and has penned a soccer history column for the Guardian.com. Lewis, who has been honored by the Press Club of Long Island and National Soccer Coaches Association of America, is the former editor of BigAppleSoccer.com. He has written seven books about the beautiful game and has published ALIVE AND KICKING The incredible but true story of the Rochester Lancers. It is available at Amazon.com.