This advertisement features the re-release of a pair of sneakers emblematic of the 1972 Munich Olympics, during which an anti-Israeli attack was committed.
Adidas announced Friday that it was removing Palestinian-born model Bella Hadid from a controversial advertising campaign for the re-release of a pair of sneakers that were iconic to the 1972 Munich Olympics, during which an anti-Israeli attack was committed.
The German equipment manufacturer, which is currently riding the wave of sneaker culture, is relaunching this retro-looking shoe this summer, called SL72, a replica of a model worn by athletes during the Munich Games.
In the middle of the competition, eleven Israeli athletes and coaches – and a German policeman – were assassinated by the Palestinian “Black September” commando.
Adidas has chosen model Bella Hadid, who has Palestinian roots and has frequently participated in pro-Palestinian demonstrations and, since October 7, has repeatedly condemned the Israeli bombings of Gaza, to front its promotional campaign.
Emoi
“We are aware that links have been made to tragic historical events – even if these are completely unintentional – and we apologize for any irritation or pain” that this may have caused, wrote the brand with the three stripes in a statement sent to AFP.
Model Bella Hadid is being removed from the campaign with “immediate effect,” an Adidas spokeswoman said.
The emotion was particularly marked among Israeli officials.
“Guess who is the face of the campaign? Bella Hadid, a model of Palestinian origin who has a history of spreading anti-Semitism and calling for violence against Israelis and Jews,” the Israeli Embassy in Berlin reacted strongly on Thursday on the X network.
“How can Adidas now claim that the memory of this event was ‘completely involuntary’? The 1972 attack has been etched in the common memory of Germans and Israelis,” Israeli Ambassador to Germany Ron Prosor told Welt TV on Friday, after Adidas apologized.
The campaign sparked a wave of criticism on social media: “Adidas is dead to me… I will not buy anything from companies that have anything in common with anti-Semites…” wrote one user on X.
The brand will continue to promote its vintage model with other faces: Jules Koundé, French footballer, A$AP Nast, American rapper and songwriter, Melissa Bon, Swiss-Ethiopian musician, and Sabrina Lan, Chinese model and influencer who lives in Berlin.
Adidas was already forced to abruptly end its lucrative collaboration with controversial American rapper Kanye West, now known as Ye, in October 2022 after he made anti-Semitic remarks.