Why the Nike deal is a big win for the embattled DFB
The DFB has been heavily criticized for leaving Adidas for Nike. But this deal should be celebrated as a major success for the embattled German football federation.
“Tradition is just peer pressure from dead people.” Nothing better fits the recent discussions about the German Football Federation (DFB) switching from Adidas to Nike from 2027 onwards than Jeff Marek's great quote on the fantastic 32 Thoughts Podcast.
While it might be sad from a nostalgic point of view that Germany will no longer wear the three stripes associated with four World Cup wins and three European Championships, it must be noted that from a financial perspective, the DFB had no choice but to leave Adidas for Nike. But we will get to the cold, hard facts in a moment.
Before we discuss the magnitude of the deal, another observation stood out. And that was the reaction, or rather populist statements, made by German politicians.
Here are some of the greatest hits: “I can’t imagine the German jersey without the three stripes on it,” German Minister of Finance Robert Habeck said. “For me, Adidas and black-red-gold always belonged together. It is a piece of German identity. I was hoping for a bit more local patriotism.”
Habeck wasn’t alone in his criticism. "It is wrong, a shame and also incomprehensible that this piece of history should end now," the Minister-President of Bavaria—the Free State in which Adidas is located—Markus Söder wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Then there was the Minister of Health and Germany’s chief populist since the COVID-19 pandemic, Karl Lauterbach. “Adidas is no longer the national team shirt?” Lauterbach wrote on X. “Instead, it is a US company? I think that’s the wrong decision as a commercial decision is destroying a piece of our native land.”
While this author expected nothing less from the Bavarian head of state and Lauterbach, Habeck's statement—a measured Green with a strong economic background—was disappointing. Only Chancellor Olaf Scholz responded dignifiedly. “I think the most important thing is that they score goals,” Scholz said. Overall, one thing that stood out was the broad incompetence displayed by politicians in this matter.
If anything, the lack of understanding behind the process that landed the DFB the most extensive kit supplier deal on the planet further indicates the incompetence of the world’s ruling elite and why humanity is at an ever-increasing risk of not even seeing the start of the Nike-DFB partnership. Not only did the DFB do this by the books, but the deal is also a significant win for the world’s largest membership organization and its seven million members.
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