uhlsport

uhlsport is a German sporting-goods company headquartered in Balingen, Baden-Württemberg. The business was established in 1948 by Karl Uhl under the name Haase & Uhl OHG. Its earliest manufacturing activity centered on leather studs for football boots, placing the company within the specialist supply chain for football footwear rather than initially operating as a broad consumer sports brand. In 1953, it expanded into the production of football-boot soles for sports-shoe manufacturers. This move broadened its technical role in football equipment and created a foundation for later development of products sold under its own name. Over subsequent decades, uhlsport added football accessories and protective equipment, including shin guards, sports bandages, footballs and goalkeeper gloves. The company gradually developed a full football-equipment range, while goalkeeper equipment became a particularly distinctive part of the uhlsport brand proposition. Its product portfolio has therefore extended beyond team apparel to include specialist performance products used by football players and goalkeepers. The brand is associated especially with goalkeeper gloves, although its broader football offer also includes balls, clothing, footwear and protective equipment. The corporate business was originally known as Haase & Uhl OHG and was later renamed Karl Uhl GmbH. In 1994, it adopted the name uhlsport GmbH. In 1998, the Uhl family sold the company to the Daiss family. Since 2002, the company has followed a multi-brand strategy covering football and handball. Football products are marketed primarily through uhlsport, while handball equipment is sold through the company’s Kempa brand. This structure allows the business to maintain a focused football identity while serving a separate handball category through another specialist label. uhlsport uses an indirect distribution model. It operates subsidiaries in France, Spain and Sweden, works with country managers in the United Kingdom, Benelux and Switzerland, and has been described as having approximately 80 distribution partners worldwide. This arrangement supports international availability without requiring the company to operate a wholly owned retail network in every market. The company’s presence is also reinforced through professional-team and competition relationships. The cited company profile identifies 1. FC Köln and 1. FC Magdeburg as official equipment-supply partners, while uhlsport is described as an official ball sponsor of Croatia’s SuperSport HNL. The company remains privately held and based in Germany. Its commercial identity is built around specialist football performance, technical equipment and professional-sport visibility rather than the breadth of a mass-market lifestyle conglomerate. The brand’s strongest area of recognition is goalkeeper equipment, supported by use among professional goalkeepers and by football-club and competition partnerships. Through Kempa, the wider company also participates in handball and, from 2023, supplied the Germany men’s national volleyball team under that brand. The available reference material does not provide financial data, a public listing, or a separately reported corporate ownership structure beyond the Daiss family ownership noted above.

uhlsport was founded in Germany in 1948 by Karl Uhl as Haase & Uhl OHG. The original business concentrated on producing leather studs for football boots, serving a specialized component need within the football footwear industry. In 1953, the company added football-boot soles for sports-shoe manufacturers. This expansion moved the business from a narrow leather-component activity toward a broader technical supplier for sports footwear. Over the following years, uhlsport progressively broadened its football range. Its additions included shin guards, sports bandages, footballs and goalkeeper gloves. The accumulation of these categories transformed the company into a full-line football-equipment manufacturer. Goalkeeper products later became one of the most recognizable areas of the uhlsport brand, distinguishing it from companies focused primarily on general sportswear or lifestyle products. The business subsequently operated under the name Karl Uhl GmbH before adopting the corporate name uhlsport GmbH in 1994. A major ownership change followed in 1998, when the Uhl family sold the company to the Daiss family. The available reference material does not state the transaction value or describe any later ownership transfer. From 2002, the company adopted a multi-brand approach. The uhlsport name remained focused on football, especially goalkeeper equipment, while handball products were developed and marketed under the company’s Kempa brand. This strategy gave the group distinct identities for two team-sport categories rather than placing all products under one label. Kempa later expanded its sports relationships, including becoming the official supplier of the Germany men’s national volleyball team in 2023. The company’s international distribution has been organized largely through indirect channels. uhlsport has subsidiaries in France, Spain and Sweden, country managers covering the United Kingdom, Benelux and Switzerland, and a network of roughly 80 distribution partners worldwide. Its permanent headquarters are in Balingen in the German state of Baden-Württemberg. The business has also developed visibility through professional football and competition partnerships, including equipment relationships with 1. FC Köln and 1. FC Magdeburg and ball-sponsorship support for Croatia’s SuperSport HNL. The available material presents uhlsport as an active, privately held German sporting-goods company. It combines a specialist football brand with the broader Kempa team-sports business. No public-market listing, ticker, financial results or independently documented executive roster is provided in the cited material.

• 2023

  Kempa appointed Germany men's national volleyball supplier

  [1]Uhlsporten.wikipedia.org

  The group’s Kempa brand became the new official supplier of the Germany men's national volleyball team.

• 2002

  Multi-brand strategy introduced

  [1]Uhlsporten.wikipedia.org

  The company began operating a multi-brand strategy, using uhlsport for football and Kempa for handball.

• 1998

  Ownership transferred to the Daiss family

  [1]Uhlsporten.wikipedia.org

  The Uhl family sold the company to the Daiss family.

• 1994

  Corporate name changed to uhlsport GmbH

  [1]Uhlsporten.wikipedia.org

  After previously operating as Karl Uhl GmbH, the business adopted the uhlsport GmbH name.

• 1953

  Expansion into football-boot soles

  [1]Uhlsporten.wikipedia.org

  The company began producing football-boot soles for sports-shoe manufacturers.

• 1948

  Company founded as Haase & Uhl OHG

  [1]Uhlsporten.wikipedia.org

  Karl Uhl established the German sporting-goods business, initially focusing on leather studs for football boots.

Specialist professional football-equipment brand, particularly associated with goalkeeper gloves and performance equipment, with a private-company and team-sport orientation.

• Football equipment

  Goalkeeper gloves

  Goalkeeper gloves are the brand’s most distinctive specialist category. uhlsport’s football identity is particularly associated with gloves designed for professional and competitive goalkeeping, alongside the wider football-equipment range.

• Football equipment

  Footballs

  uhlsport manufactures and distributes footballs as part of its broader football portfolio. The company also gains competition visibility through its role as an official ball sponsor of Croatia’s SuperSport HNL.

• Apparel

  Football teamwear

  The brand’s football range includes jerseys and related teamwear for clubs and players. Teamwear supports the company’s equipment-supplier relationships with professional football organizations.

• Protective equipment

  Protective football equipment

  The company expanded beyond footwear components into shin guards, sports bandages and other football accessories, helping establish a comprehensive football-equipment offering.

• Handball equipment · 2002

  Kempa handball equipment

  Kempa is the company’s dedicated handball brand, introduced as part of the group’s multi-brand strategy from 2002. It gives the wider business a separate identity in handball and other team-sport partnerships.

• Professional goalkeeper and football partnerships

  Germany · Europe · International

  uhlsport builds brand visibility through equipment relationships with professional football clubs and the use of its goalkeeper gloves by professional players.

  Outcome. The partnerships reinforce the brand’s specialist positioning in football and goalkeeper equipment.

  Source
• SuperSport HNL official ball sponsorship

  Croatia

  The company supports Croatia’s SuperSport HNL as an official ball sponsor, associating the uhlsport name with a national professional football competition.

  Outcome. The cited material confirms the sponsorship relationship but does not report campaign performance or commercial results.

  Source

• 2023

  Kempa appointed official Germany men's national volleyball supplierOther

  Background

  The company’s Kempa brand had been used for handball and was also participating in broader team-sport activities.

  Action taken

  Kempa became the new official supplier of the Germany men's national volleyball team.

  Aftermath

  The appointment extended the group’s national-team visibility beyond its core football and handball activities.

  Source

• 2002

  Adoption of a multi-brand team-sports strategyStrategy

  Background

  The company had developed a broad football-equipment business and sought to organize football and handball activities through distinct brand identities.

  Action taken

  uhlsport retained the football specialization, particularly goalkeeper equipment, while marketing handball equipment through the Kempa brand.

  Aftermath

  The group continued operating across team sports with separate uhlsport and Kempa brand propositions. The cited material does not provide financial results from the decision.

  Source

1. 1Uhlsporten.wikipedia.org
2. 2uhlsport official websiteuhlsport.com