unyer advisors from Luther and KWR have provided legal advice to Swedish company New Wave Group AB (publ) on its acquisition of all shares in uhlsport GmbH, a leading German manufacturer of team sports clothing and equipment.
Wave Group has signed an agreement to acquire 100 per cent of the shares in uhlsport GmbH. A Luther team led by Thomas Kuhnle advised New Wave Group on the corporate and transaction law aspects of the acquisition, as well as on real estate and competition law matters. Austrian law firm KWR, also a member of unyer, provided advice on the merger control notification in Austria.
Headquartered in Balingen, Baden-Württemberg, uhlsport is a long-established manufacturer and distributor of clothing, accessories and equipment for team sports, particularly football and handball. The company operates under the well-known brands uhlsport and Kempa. In addition to its central warehousing facilities in Balingen and Bisingen, the group has subsidiaries in France, Sweden and Spain and distributes its products throughout Europe and internationally.
The acquisition will further strengthen New Wave Group’s position in the international team sports market. The brands, product portfolios and distribution networks of both groups complement one another, particularly in football and handball. As part of New Wave Group, uhlsport will benefit from access to a broader product portfolio and an extensive international distribution network. The company will become part of New Wave Group’s Sports & Leisure business segment.
The transaction is structured as a share deal and is subject to the necessary competition law approvals.
The transaction demonstrates the strength of the unyer network in advising on international M&A transactions. By combining Luther’s expertise in corporate law and M&A with KWR’s knowledge of Austrian competition law, the two firms provided coordinated legal support across jurisdictions.
The cooperation reflects unyer’s approach of bringing together independent European law firms to offer clients integrated, cross-border legal advice while drawing on local market knowledge and specialist expertise.