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The shoemaker announced it was halting its partnership with Irving, the controversial basketball star who has been suspended indefinitely by his team, the Brooklyn Nets, for failing to disavow antisemitism. It will no longer release the latest version of Irving’s sneaker, which was due to drop this month.
“At Nike, we believe there is no place for hate speech and we condemn any form of antisemitism,” the company said in a statement late Friday. “To that end, we’ve made the decision to suspend our relationship with Kyrie Irving effective immediately and will no longer launch the Kyrie 8.”
Earlier this week, Nike condemned antisemitism in a boilerplate statement but hasn’t said publicly whether it will cut ties with Irving. The shoe deal, reportedly worth $11 million a year, began in 2014. ESPN said in May that the contract was unlikely to be renewed after this season.
Nike Executive Chairman Mark Parker singled out Irving’s sneakers in 2019 as a key part of Nike’s basketball product pipeline over the next few seasons. Irving’s shoe line saw double-digit sales growth that spring, Parker said at the time.
The risk of staying silent is obvious. Sporting-goods rival Adidas AG has drawn criticism in recent weeks over how long it took to terminate its partnership with Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, after his antisemitic remarks. The fallout continued on Friday as Adidas announced it was in talks to replace its chief executive officer.
Attacks on Nike have started to emerge as well. On MSNBC’s Morning Joe on Friday, co-host Joe Scarborough said Nike’s inaction suggests “they believe in social justice, just not for Jews.”
Irving has gotten into public spats with Nike and the Nets in recent years. He was unable to play home games for the Nets earlier in the pandemic because of his refusal to get a Covid-19 vaccine. In 2021, he called the Kyrie 8 sneaker “trash” and said Nike was planning to release it without his approval.
After his suspension on Thursday, Irving apologized on Instagram.
It’s been a long fall for an athlete who won over fans a decade ago with his portrayal of Uncle Drew in PepsiCo Inc. commercials. The beverage maker declined to comment on the current scandal and said Irving hasn’t had a deal with the company for many years.
A spokesperson for Skullcandy said the maker of headphones hasn’t worked with Irving since 2018, “when he received his earnout following the brand going private.”
Beyond Meat Inc., which named Irving as a brand ambassador for its plant-based protein products, didn’t respond to requests for comment.
—With assistance from Brett Pulley, Deena Shanker and Shiyin Chen.
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