Swiss sportswear upstart On is exploring a foray into football, a move that would broaden its already diverse sporting portfolio.
While the company has not yet issued an official statement, co‑founder Olivier Bernhard indicated to Bloomberg that the brand sees football as a natural next step after successful forays into tennis and the rapidly growing Hyrox circuit.
The potential expansion comes on the back of a dramatic financial turnaround: net income surged 82.2% to 103.3 million Swiss francs, adjusted profit rose 75.3% to 123.6 million, and quarterly sales climbed 14.5% to 831.9 million francs, breaking the 800‑million‑franc threshold for the first time.
On's history of innovation includes the 2020 launch of the tennis‑inspired sneaker The Roger, a collaboration that leveraged the legacy of Roger Federer, and a recent partnership that brought athletes Alexander Roncevic and Ida Mathilde Steensgaard into the Hyrox arena.
Football as the next frontier?
Industry analysts note that the company's aggressive growth trajectory and its ability to attract high‑profile athletes position it as a credible challenger to established giants such as Adidas and Nike, both of which dominate the global sports market.
If the football project moves forward, it could reshape the competitive landscape, offering a fresh challenger that blends performance engineering with a direct‑to‑consumer model, while also tapping into a market valued at tens of billions of euros worldwide.