Slazenger is a British sports equipment brand owned by the Frasers Group. The company was established as a sporting goods shop in 1881 by Ralph and Albert Slazenger on Cannon Street, London. Slazenger was acquired by Dunlop Rubber in 1959. Dunlop was acquired by BTR in 1985. Sports Direct acquired the business in 2004.
Tennis balls and parts manufactured by Dunlop Slazenger, on display at the Design Museum in London
Roger Federer hitting a Slazenger tennis ball at Wimbledon. The brand has sponsored the tournament since 1902, the oldest sponsorship in sport.
Official match ball of the 1966 FIFA World Cup
Slazenger container and tennis balls at the 2012 London Olympics
Dunlop Ltd. was a British multinational company involved in the manufacture of various natural rubber goods. Its business was founded in 1889 by Harvey du Cros and he involved John Boyd Dunlop who had re-invented and developed the first pneumatic tyre. It was one of the first multinationals, and under du Cros and, after him, under Eric Geddes, grew to be one of the largest British industrial companies. J. B. Dunlop had dropped any ties to it well before his name was used for any part of the business. The business and manufactory was founded in Upper Stephens Street in Dublin. A plaque marks the site, which is now part of the head office of the Irish multinational departments store brand, Dunnes Stores.
John Boyd Dunlop
Share of the Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Company Ltd., issued 23 May 1912
A 1914 Dunlop print advertisement for garden hoses
Dunlop Advertising from M. DuMont Schauberg (1925)