Adidas Latest Company To Cut Ties With Russia: How Soccer Is Changing Up The Game During Ukraine Conflict

A leading sports apparel company is the latest to end a sponsorship with Russia.

What Happened: German company Adidas AG ADDYY announced it has suspended its current uniform deal with the Russian National team.

Adidas has partnered with Russia since 2008 and the current deal runs through the end of 2022. The agreement is said to be “on hold” and could be reinstated at a later time.

Related Link: How The Sports World Is Reacting To The Russia-Ukraine Conflict 

Why It’s Important: The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has led to several major changes in the sports world, with soccer leading the way in impact and changes.

UEFA announced it would move the Champions League final from Saint Petersburg, Russia to Paris, France. The soccer governing body also ended a partnership with Russian state-owned Gazprom OGZPY, a leading global energy company.

FIFA announced it is banning Russia from the 2022 World Cup qualifying playoff, while Russian club team Spartak Moscow was kicked out of Europa League competition due to the recent bans.

Meanwhile, English Premier League team Manchester United MANU announced it ended its sponsorship with Russian airline Aeroflot, which Russian state owned. 

German soccer team FC Schalke also announced it would remove the logo of sponsor Gazprom from its uniforms, replacing it with “Schalke 04” instead.

Photo: Courtesy of Marco Verch on Flickr