Apparel and Footwear Company LI-NING Becomes an Official Partner of the NBA Champion Miami HEAT

BEIJING and MIAMI, Dec. 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- China's leading sportswear company, LI-NING Company, today announced it has become an Official Partner of the NBA Champion Miami HEAT, effective immediately. The partnership is part of a comprehensive marketing program to support WADE, a new athletic footwear and apparel collection that LI-NING recently launched with two-time NBA Champion and HEAT star Dwyane Wade.

The partnership provides LI-NING with in-arena signage at AmericanAirlines Arena and other advertising assets on Miami HEAT properties, including HEAT.com and the team's TV broadcasts on Sun Sports. LI-NING products, including WADE branded merchandise, may be sold at the Arena in 2013.

"We are very excited to be the latest all-star to join the roster of the Miami HEAT and help support the team's journey to another NBA Championship," said Brian Cupps, director of brand initiatives for basketball at LI-NING.  "The HEAT offer an amazing platform on which to engage with fans who will love our upcoming WADE merchandise."  

"The LI-NING brand represents both style and substance and is therefore a welcome addition to the Miami HEAT family of partners," said Eric Woolworth, President of The HEAT Group's Business Operations. "We're eager to help introduce LI-NING to HEAT fans everywhere, and we are confident their new collection of WADE merchandise will have a very broad appeal."

Terms of the partnership were not announced. For more information about LI-NING, please visit http://www.li-ning.com.

About LI-NING COMPANY Company Limited

Li Ning Company Limited is one of the leading sports brand companies in China, mainly providing sporting goods including footwear, apparel, equipment and accessories for professional and leisure purposes primarily under the LI-NING brand. Headquartered in Beijing, the Group has brand marketing, research and development, design, manufacturing, distribution and retail capabilities. It has established an extensive supply chain management system and a retail distribution network in China, predominantly through outsourced manufacturing operations and franchised distribution.

In addition to its core LI-NING brand, the Group (i) manufactures, markets, distributes and sells outdoor sports products in China under the French brand AIGLE, the exclusive rights of which were granted to a joint venture established with Aigle International S.A.; (ii) engages in the manufacture, research and development, marketing and sale of table tennis and other sports equipment under the Double Happiness brand through a subsidiary in which the Group has 57.5% interest; (iii) develops, manufactures, markets, distributes and sells licensed products in China under the Italian sports fashion brand Lotto under an exclusive license granted by a company owned by Lotto Sport Italia S.p.A.; and (iv) engages in the research and development, manufacture and sale of badminton equipment under the Kason brand.

About The HEAT Group

The HEAT Group is comprised of the National Basketball Association's Miami HEAT and the 19,600-seat AmericanAirlines Arena. The HEAT won its first championship in 2006 and its second in 2012. The franchise is currently celebrating its 25^th anniversary season (2012-13). The AmericanAirlines Arena is a state-of-the-art facility which hosts over 150 events per year. For more information, please visit HEAT.com and AAArena.com.

SOURCE LI-NING