Adidas pulls plug on $3bn Kanye deal over antisemitic comments

The sportswear company have cut all ties with the rapper after he made a promise on social media to go “death con 3 on Jewish people”.

Kanye West. Photo by Scott Dudelson/FilmMagic

The sportswear company have cut all ties with the rapper after he made a promise on social media to go “death con 3 on Jewish people”.

Adidas has cut ties with Kanye West, saying it “does not tolerate antisemitism” after the rapper was suspended from Instagram and Twitter over offensive posts.

The German sportswear brand said they would end their partnership with West and stop manufacturing his Yeezy-branded products - a deal which is reported to have generated $3.1bn a year, and 10% of the company's total revenue. Ending the deal will cost the company at least $350m in net income this year, analysts said.

Adidas said recent comments and actions from West, who had legally changed his name to Ye, had been “unacceptable, hateful and dangerous, and they violate the company’s values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect and fairness”.

Photo by Jonathan Leibson/Getty Images for ADIDAS

“After a thorough review, the company has taken the decision to terminate the partnership with Ye immediately, end production of Yeezy-branded products and stop all payments to Ye and his companies. Adidas will stop the Adidas Yeezy business with immediate effect," a statement from an Adidas spokesperson said.

West, 45, has been strongly condemned for comments made in recent interviews and a promise on social media to go “death con 3 on Jewish people”.

The company had initially resisted pressure to cut the Yeezy deal, despite calls from the Central Council of Jews in Germany.

West’s personal fortune is also likely to take a hit. Forbes reported the artist is now worth $US400m, down from $2bn in the magazine’s billionaires list this year, although West argued the Adidas deal was worth more than $5bn.

Adidas joins American clothing giant Gap and talent agency the Creative Artists Agency in ending partnerships with the rapper over his antisemitic and "racist" comments. Luxury fashion designer Balenciaga is also believed to have dropped West.

Adidas's Yeezy brand collaboration with West was also put under review, after he showed a "White Lives Matter" T-shirt design at Paris Fashion Week.

With The Times