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Puma SE aims to boost revenue generated from soccer at double-digit rates, saying it will use the World Cup to defend its position in the sport despite the absence of the company’s marquee team, Italy.

“Our focus is to grow the business and be the global No. 3,” Johan Adamsson, who heads Puma’s team-sports marketing activities, said in an interview. “Our goal is to continue to grow double-digit this year and in the next two to three years.”

Soccer is dominated by market leaders Nike Inc. and Puma’s crosstown rival, Adidas AG. Newcomers like Under Armour Inc. are trying to push into the sport, and New Balance Athletics Inc. has vowed to edge past Puma in soccer.

“It is the No. 1 global sport,” Adamsson said. “It is 24/7, 365 days, in music, in gaming, in culture. From a consumer perspective, it’s everywhere.”

The hype has made signing top teams expensive. Manchester United in 2014 switched to Adidas from Nike in a 10-year deal worth a minimum 750 million pounds ($1 billion).

To remain competitive, Puma churns out new soccer shoes more frequently, with colors updated as often as every eight weeks, Adamsson said. It also snapped up professional teams rivals dropped, including former Adidas squads Olympique de Marseille and AC Milan.

Italy’s failure to qualify for the World Cup deprived Puma, whose logo appears on the team’s shirts, of one of its most visible sponsorship opportunities at the tournament.

The company’s decision to re-enter basketball won’t come at the expense of soccer, Adamsson said.

“We will continue to invest, but we won’t go crazy,” Adamsson said.