Why Jobe Bellingham's Borussia Dortmund debut shirt at 2025 Club World Cup will never be seen again amid unusual quirk
Published 25/06/2025 at 12:30 GMT+1
Borussia Dortmund take on South Korean side Ulsan on Wednesday night in a crucial match for their 2025 FIFA Club World Cup knockout hopes. The Bundesliga side have been bolstered by the recent transfer arrival of their latest Bellingham - Jobe - who made his debut against Fluminense in their first group game. But why will that shirt never be seen again?
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Video credit: SNTV
Some eagle-eyed fans - especially those of a Borussia Dortmund persuasion - might have spotted something curious at the FIFA Club World Cup.
In the German side's first group game of the tournament against Fluminense - in which Jobe Bellingham made his debut - their main shirt sponsor was Evonik, a speciality chemicals company that has been a partner of the club since July 2006.
However, for their second game against Mamelodi Sundowns, Evonik mysteriously disappeared and were replaced as the main sponsor by Vodafone.
Was this a permanent move or something only for the tournament? Will Evonik reappear from the wilderness?
As confirmed by Dortmund, the clash with Fluminense represented the 671st and final time that the club will feature Evonik on a competitive matchday shirt.
From that game on, Vodafone will be the new main shirt sponsor of the Bundesliga outfit.
But there are a couple of twists.
Firstly, Wednesday's clash with Ulsan may reveal another difference. For the meeting with The Sundowns, the Vodafone logo was red on Dortmund's white away kit.
But with Dortmund the 'home' team for Wednesday's match, it is expected that they will be wearing their customary yellow shirts with a BLACK Vodafone logo.
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Allow Marcel de Groot, CEO of Vodafone Germany, to explain the 'black belongs on yellow' principle the two entities agreed upon.
"This is not a compromise and was never a question for me," he said.
"Yellow and red don’t go together visually. But of course, we want the new jerseys to look good! It’s also a matter of respect for the fans and the club.
"The Vodafone logo is world-renowned. It makes no difference whether it’s in red or black. If the shirt is ever a different colour than yellow (meaning the away and alternate shirts), the logo can still be red on the jersey.
"I know very well from our partnership with Ajax how important it is to get the fans on board. Because the fans are what make a club."
Secondly, Evonik are not disappearing from partnering with Dortmund - far from it.
The company are to become BVB's 'Champion Partner', cooperating "primarily in the areas of sustainability and health."
So to Evonik goes the final, emotional word.
"After almost 20 years on the pitch, we are moving to the sidelines," their statement read.
"Together with BVB, we have achieved everything there is to achieve in football: league titles, cup wins, two Champions League finals. Drama, emotions and a true love of the game: Wembley, Anfield and the Bernabeu.
"That is the stuff that real football dreams are made of."
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