The partnership with the US sporting goods manufacturer is scheduled to begin in January 2027 and last until 2034. Nike is supposed to equip all German national soccer teams during this period. “We look forward to working with Nike and the trust placed in us,” said DFB President Bernd Neuendorf. The decision comes shortly before the home European Championship, which begins in June and where the German team will wear adidas. For the tournament, they even stayed at the adidas location in Herzogenaurach in Franconia.
High-ranking German politicians criticized the decision. “I can hardly imagine the German jersey without the three stripes. For me, Adidas and black-red-gold always belonged together. A piece of German identity. “I would have liked a bit more local patriotism,” said Economics Minister and Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck (Greens).
Patriotism also resonated in the words of Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD): “Adidas should no longer be the national jersey in football? A US company instead? I think it’s a wrong decision where commerce destroys a tradition and a piece of home,” wrote Lauterbach on X (Twitter).
Adidas should no longer be the national jersey in football? A US company instead? I think it’s a wrong decision where commerce destroys a tradition and a piece of home… pic.twitter.com/14N4xWCQJa
— Prof. Karl Lauterbach (@Karl_Lauterbach) March 21, 2024
“Incomprehensible” and “unpatriotic”
The CSU Bundestag member Dorothee Bär also described it on X as “a merciless wrong decision”. According to “Bild”, Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) showed no understanding: “German football is pure homeland – and not a pawn in international corporate battles.” CDU boss Friedrich Merz called the decision “incomprehensible” and “also unpatriotic”.
Prime Ministers of German federal states also spoke up. If adidas and Puma are a trademark for German quality, then he would be happy if the national team also advertised German quality to the outside world, said Thuringia’s Bodo Ramelow on RTL/ntv. “This reduction solely to money and dollar signs really gets on my nerves,” said the left-wing politician.
“American fantasy brand”
“The three stripes are of course part of the four stars that we wear on our chest. The world champion wears adidas, not some American fantasy brand. That’s why I think what the DFB is doing is a strong piece,” said his Hessian CDU colleague Boris Rhein.
There was also a lot of excitement among fans and in media comments. Criticism of the decision predominated on social networks. A comment in “Spiegel” about the stripeless jersey asked whether the change of supplier might even be “treason”. In an ongoing online survey conducted by the sports magazine “kicker” on Friday afternoon, 90 percent of participants described the departure from the three stripes on the national team’s jerseys as a mistake.
Adidas surprised
The DFB and adidas have been partners for many decades. The sporting goods company was surprised by the decision: “We were informed by the DFB today that the association will have a new supplier from 2027,” it said in a short statement on Thursday.
The decision against adidas and in favor of Nike was obviously driven by economic considerations. According to information from the “Handelsblatt”, Nike will cost the deal more than 100 million euros per year. This would mean that Nike would double adidas’ previous contract amount. The figures have not been confirmed; the DFB simply stated that Nike “made by far the best economic offer”.
German league rejects investor entry
A debate about the commercialization of German football recently caused a lot of excitement. The German Bundesliga’s plan to bring financial investors and equity capital companies on board angered football fans. The fans protested loudly with banners, tennis balls thrown onto the field and other disruptive actions – and ultimately successfully: the German Football League (DFL) gave in at the end of February and buried their plans.
Symbols and political culture struggle
The new away jersey – still designed by adidas – had recently caused a lot of conversation. The purple and pink jersey caused heated debates on social networks, as it was criticized as being too “unmanly”. The DFB and adidas were apparently prepared for this and presented several video clips in which the critical tones as well as the traditional view of the German jersey are commented on ironically and humorously.
APA/dpa/Daniel Karmann Currently still from adidas: The new German home jersey is white, the one for away games is purple-pink
The fact that the German national team is currently being criticized is mainly because it has not been able to meet expectations in terms of sport. She performed poorly in the past three tournaments. They were eliminated in the preliminary round at the 2018 and 2022 World Cups and in the round of 16 at the 2021 European Championships. Right-wing fans in particular attribute this to a lack of “German virtues”, and there is openly racist criticism of players from the second and third generation of immigrants on social networks.
A pink jersey and the debate about the rainbow captain’s armband at the World Cup in Qatar opened up “culture wars” as we know them from politics. The weak team is often linked in social media comments with criticism of the “traffic light coalition” of the SPD, Greens and FDP. Both are, as can be read in many postings, symbolic of the decline of the “real Germany”. If the German team performs poorly at the home European Championships, these debates will probably continue to gain momentum.
2024-03-22 23:29:34
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