After being replaced by Nike, Adidas is involved in controversy with a banned symbol on Germany’s uniform

After being exchanged for Nike at german national team, putting an end to the longest lasting sporting equipment supply relationship in the history of world football, spanning more than 70 yearsThe Adidas found itself involved in a controversy involving the uniform that will be used by the team in Euro 2024.

The sporting event organized by Union of European Football Associations (Uefa) will be held in Germany, from June 14th to July 14th. Nike’s contract with the German team will only start in 2027. Therefore, it was up to Adidas to design the uniform that will be used in this year’s continental tournament.

The launch of the new model took place days after the announcement of the agreement between German Football Association (DFL) and Nike. Everything was going well, until users noticed a peculiarity in the font used by Adidas to write the numbers on the t-shirts.

Some of them decided to personalize the new shirt with the number 44 and noticed a great similarity with the letters “S”, written in the runic alphabet known as recent Futhark, which was used by Germanic peoples in the Middle Ages, especially in Scandinavia.

The two “esses” in runic style were the symbol adopted by the Schutzstaffel, known by the acronym SS and which was the shock troops of the Nazi Party, which governed Germany between 1933 and 1945.

Famous for its violent methods, the group was at the forefront of several atrocities such as the displacement of Jews to concentration camps, in addition to being chosen to implement the so-called Final Solution, which resulted in the extermination of millions of people during the Holocaust.

As soon as the problem was noticed, after users shared images of the personalization online on social networks, Adidas decided to block the option with the number 44 on its sales platform.

On Monday (1st), the DFL announced that number 4 would be redone, in order to prevent the controversy from continuing.

The memory of the Holocaust and the fight against the use of Nazi symbols is a topic that goes beyond the field of morality in Germany.

The use of emblems linked to this far-right ideology, such as the swastika, the Hitler salute or even the SS symbol, is prohibited in the country.

The topic is so sensitive in Germany that it even affects the names that parents give their children. Although there is no law that expressly prohibits a baby from being called Adolf (without the surname Hitler), authorities responsible for civil registration may refuse this first name if they note that the choice is intended to promote right-wing supremacist ideologies.

In the 1930s, Adolf became one of the most popular names in Germany, but began to suffer rejection before the end of the Second World War, in 1945, when the country’s defeat became increasingly evident.

After the collapse of Nazism, the given name fell into disgrace and even people born long before the institution of the authoritarian regime began to avoid using it.

Coincidentally, Adolf was the name of the founder of Adidas, who preferred to be called by the diminutive Adi. The company’s name came precisely from the fusion of the nickname with the initial letters of his surname Dassler.