The double diamond Lotto logo is back

The Lotto logo, so well-known on European football fields and tennis courts, will now also be worn by South African athletes. The Lotto brand is being relaunched into South Africa by Thornbird Trading as a technical performance brand that will take full advantage of its Italian heritage that will be seen in the designs that incorporate the latest fashion trends.

The launch will be in the capable hands of Robert Blom who has seventeen years’ experience of successfully managing — and growing — footwear brands in South Africa.

Lotto Sport Itallia made its debut as a sport footwear manufacturer in 1973 with a range of tennis shoes. They branched out into making footwear for basketball, volleyball, athletics and football, for the first decade mainly concentrating on the Italian market, where Lotto was the market leader in tennis footwear. Top players like John Newcombe, Andrei Gomes and José Luis Clerc introduced Lotto to the international tennis market.

A clothing range followed the footwear production.

In the 1980s Lotto started becoming the renowned football brand it is known as today. International stars like Ruud Gullit and top teams, including Holland , signed major collaboration agreements to wear Lotto football boots. The involvement of these international players in the design and refinement of their boots and tennis shoes helped Lotto to become a European footwear market leader in these sports.

Today the performance segment is very strong, but it has been combined with Italian flair for design, quality and innovations like the laceless Zhero boot that fits around the foot like a glove.

In the SA range, due in May, special focus will be given to footwear and technical clothing for football and tennis, with products on the cutting edge in terms of innovation and design. Apart from footwear and clothing, a selected range of accessories like balls will also be available.

A sport-inspired men’s and women’s leisure clothing range has also been developed, incorporating all the technical and stylistic know-how that went into producing the performance range.

Lotto is currently available in 80 different countries through independent sports stores, specialised chain stores and large stores with specialised sports departments. Special emphasis is given to developing the Lotto brand name through exclusive corners and shop-in-shops.

Throughout Lotto’s history, major sponsorships have helped to build brand recognition and fan support.

Some of Europe’s most outstanding footballers have placed their trust in the brand. Examples are Italy ’s popular World Cup striker and 2006 European Golden Boot winner Luca Toni; Brazil ’s most-capped player and member of two World Cup-winning teams, Cafu; and Clarence Seedorf, the only player to have won the EUFA Cup as a member of three different teams. Several Italian, German, French, Dutch as well as the Ukrainian and Colombian national teams also play in Lotto.

In South Africa, Lotto is in the process or negotiationg to sign a Premier Football Club.

Lotto is currently worn by four of the top 20 seeded men on the tennis circuit, namely Juan Carlos Ferrero, David Ferrer, Dominic Hrbaty and Gaston Gaudio.

Top women like Francesca Schiavone and Sania Mirza are among the top tennis professionals who wear Lotto.