Spurs score out of Court settlement with INEOS

The fall out is a reminder for sports clubs and partner businesses to ensure payment mechanics, exclusive rights and termination options are set out as clearly as possible in the contract when relations between organisations are typically at their most cordial and levels of goodwill are high.

The Deal

INEOS has a rich history of investing into sport, supporting Eliud Kipchoge's record-breaking sub-2 hour marathon, acquiring Team Sky and transforming the pro cycling outfit into the INEOS Grenadiers, and partnering up with the All Blacks rugby union team. It is no surprise that INEOS has also been involved in the beautiful game.

In December 2020, INEOS Hygienics, part of the wider INEOS group, initially tied up with Spurs to become the club's "Official Hygiene Supplier" during the Covid-19 pandemic. Fast-forward two years and INEOS Automotive Limited, a separate offshoot of the INEOS group which manufactures and sells vehicles, penned a deal with Spurs to become a fully-fledged sponsor of the Premier League club. As part of the agreement, INEOS became Spurs' official 4x4 vehicle partner in exchange for over £17m across five years.

So far, so good…

Teammates to Rivals

The partnership agreement must have been continuing as planned for the initial stages of the agreement but the status quo in the Premier League started to shift in February 2024 with the news that Sir Jim Ratcliffe, chairman and CEO of the INEOS group, completed a deal to acquire 27.7% of Manchester United FC. Fast forward a few months and Spurs were left waiting for a payment from INEOS relating to an indexation adjustment to the tune of £479,689.20 which was allegedly due on 16 August 2024.

In early December, INEOS failed to make a £5.1 payment to Spurs in relation to the fourth instalment of the sponsorship fees payable under the agreement. Shortly afterwards, Sir Jim Ratcliffe upped his stake in the Red Devils to 28.94%.

The post-match fallout

Following the lack of payments by INEOS, Spurs wrote to INEOS on 11 March 2025 terminating the agreement with immediate effect. By early June, Spurs had issued a claim in the Commercial Court seeking to recover sums of over £5m from INEOS. Spurs also sought a declaration from the Court that the club had validly terminated the agreement with INEOS on 11 March 2025.

INEOS elected to fight fire with fire and submitted a counterclaim for more than £1m, alleging that Spurs had breached the exclusive rights granted to INEOS by discussing the potential granting of similar rights with rival car manufacturer, Audi. The club accepted that discussions with Audi had taken place but denied those discussions gave INEOS a right to terminate their partnership agreement.

A full-time handshake

The parties have now filed a Tomlin Order, staying the High Court proceedings. Whilst the terms of that settlement are confidential, it is reported that INEOS have agreed to make a multi-million pound payment to the North London club.

The high-profile fallout serves as a reminder to sporting organisations to properly protect themselves when entering into long term and high value contracts. Well drafted terms could be the difference between spending more time focused on the Courtroom rather than the pitch and, of course, a few million pounds in (or out of) your pocket.