Adidas has apologised for “causing offence and distress” by using Palestinian model Bella Hadid in an advert for the re-release of its 1972 Munich Olympic sneakers.
The sports apparel company chose Hadid as the face of its recently launched SL72 campaign, which revives Adidas' “coveted classic” sneakers from the '70s and celebrates the 52nd anniversary of the Munich Olympics. However, the 1972 Munich Olympics were overshadowed by a terrorist attack that killed 11 Israeli athletes and one German police officer at the hands of Palestinian militant groups during the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Hadid, whose father is Palestinian, describes herself as “proud Palestinian.”
“We understand there has been an association with a tragic historical event. This was entirely unintentional and we apologize for any inconvenience or concern it may have caused,” Adidas said in a statement to USA Today Sports on Thursday. “As a result, we will be revising the remainder of the campaign. We believe sport is a unifying force in the world and will continue to work to champion diversity and equality in everything we do.”
Adidas' SL72 ad shows Hadid wearing Adidas and holding flowers to show off the sneakers. “Send flowers to Bella Hadid in SL72,” Adidas Originals tweeted. However, after the company apologized and promised to revise the campaign, all tweets featuring Hadid were removed from the Adidas Originals X account and Instagram. As of Thursday afternoon, Hadid was still listed on Adidas' website.
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The American Jewish Committee called on Adidas to address its “serious errors.”
“At the 1972 Munich Olympics, 12 Israelis were killed and taken hostage by the Palestinian terrorist group Black September. Adidas' choice of a vociferously anti-Israel model to evoke that dark Olympics is either a gross oversight or deliberate incitement. Neither is acceptable,” the AJC wrote in its X newspaper on Thursday.
Hadid is a vocal supporter of Palestine, and frequently uses her platform to speak out for Palestinians affected by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In December 2017, she took part in a protest against former President Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, writing at the time, “The treatment of Palestinians is unfair, one-sided and should not be tolerated. I stand with Palestine.” Last month, Hadid and her sister, fellow supermodel Gigi Hadid, donated $1 million to Palestinian relief efforts, according to the BBC.
Footballer Jules Koundé, rapper A$AP Nast, musician Melissa Vonn and model Sabrina Lan also feature in the campaign, all of whom remain visible on Adidas' various social media accounts.
