Adidas apologizes after Israeli soldier campaign triggers boycott calls
Human rights activists accuse sportswear giant of insensitivity for featuring former Israeli soldier in amputee campaign as thousands of Palestinians in Gaza live with limb loss
BERLIN (MNTV) – Adidas has apologized after facing mounting calls for a boycott over an Israeli advertising campaign that featured a former soldier who lost his leg while serving in the country’s military.
The German sportswear company said Monday that the advertisement was part of a local promotion for its Single Shoe service, which allows people with amputations or limb differences to buy one shoe rather than a pair.
“We recognize that an image used in a recent local activation by the local team has raised concerns and strong reactions,” Adidas said.
“It was never our intent to cause offense and we apologize for anyone affected.”
The campaign featured Shalev Biton, a former member of the Israeli army’s Nahal infantry brigade whose left leg was amputated after he was seriously wounded near Gaza in May 2021.
Biton was among a group of disabled athletes featured in posters displayed at Adidas stores in Israel. The campaign was limited to Israel and was not part of the company’s global advertising, according to Adidas.
Gaza amputations fuel anger
The backlash has focused heavily on the decision to use a former Israeli soldier to promote a service for amputees while thousands of Palestinians in Gaza have lost limbs during Israel’s genocide in the enclave.
The World Health Organization said in May that more than 5,000 traumatic limb amputations had been recorded in Gaza since October 2023.
More than 22,000 people had suffered major limb injuries, while around 43,000 people were living with potentially life-changing injuries. Up to a quarter of those were children.
Rehabilitation services in Gaza have meanwhile struggled to cope because of damage to the health system, shortages of medical equipment and limited access to prosthetics and specialist care.
Critics said the contrast made the Adidas campaign particularly insensitive.
Rather than objecting to the Single Shoe initiative itself, activists largely focused on the company’s choice of Biton as the face of the service in Israel while Palestinian amputees remained at the center of a massive humanitarian and rehabilitation crisis.
Boycott calls spread
Spanish actor Javier Bardem was among those calling on consumers to stop buying Adidas products over the campaign.
Other activists, artists and social media users also criticized the company, with some posting images and videos of themselves discarding Adidas products.
Adidas sought to distance its global operations from the Israeli promotion, saying the Single Shoe program was designed as an accessibility initiative rather than a political statement.
The service was first rolled out in 23 European countries and allows customers to buy one shoe for half the price of a pair at participating Adidas-owned stores.
It has since expanded into parts of Asia and the Middle East, including Palestine, the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Egypt.
The company said it remained committed to inclusion and would “continue to listen, learn and work to ensure that our actions reflect the inclusive values we stand for.”
Another controversy
The dispute is not the first time Adidas has faced criticism over its handling of issues connected to Israel and Palestine.
In 2024, the company removed Palestinian American model Bella Hadid from a campaign for a retro sneaker associated with the 1972 Munich Olympics after objections from Israel.
Adidas later apologized to Hadid and other participants in the campaign, saying it had made an “unintentional mistake.”
The latest controversy has again placed the company under pressure over how global brands navigate the political and humanitarian fallout of Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
For human rights activists, the issue was not simply the use of an amputee athlete in an accessibility campaign, but whose experience of disability was being elevated at a time when Gaza is facing what the WHO describes as an unprecedented need for long-term trauma rehabilitation.
We must take charge of our narrative. Research indicates that 92% of their Muslim coverage is negative. Help us change that.
Have Your Say!
Have you been affected by the issues raised in this story? Please share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@soundvision.com.
Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a Muslim Network TV’s representative. You can also get in touch in the following ways:
Tweet: @MuslimNetworkTV
