The German group said in a statement on Friday it would re-invest the proceeds of the sale into its "Creating the New" strategy.

"Nostalgia headwear and apparel is not core to this strategy and the sale of Mitchell & Ness will allow us to reduce complexity and pursue our target consumer more aggressively with our core brands," Adidas said in a statement on Friday.

The buyer is a newly formed entity primarily owned by U.S. private equity firm Juggernaut Capital Partners.

(Reporting by Maria Sheahan; Editing by Caroline Copley)