Brazilian giant Santos has confirmed that its partnership with Umbro has ended and it has agreed a deal through to 2015 with a new supplier, widely reported to be Nike.

The Sao Paulo club has stated the identity of its new partner will be revealed soon with the new agreement set to commence in March, allowing adequate time for the manufacture of suitable levels of apparel for both the Brazilian and international market.

English sportswear firm Umbro is now a subsidiary of Nike and Santos revealed an agreement has been reached for the club to continue to wear Umbro-branded apparel through to March. The addition of Santos will broaden Nike’s presence in the Brazilian football market ahead of the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In addition to equipping the Brazilian national team, the American sportswear giant also has contracts with Bahia, Coritiba, Internacional and Corinthians.

Santos has partnered with Umbro since 1998, but believes its new deal will further its goal of enhancing the club’s brand in the global market. “We are working increasingly to internationalise the brand, a process that had an important boost in Japan (where Santos competed in the Club World Cup) last year,” Armenio Neto, Santos’ marketing manager, told the club’s official website. “With this new contract being signed, we will be able to explore the sale of shirts in key international markets, with Santos present in the main shops of the world.”