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Adidas has removed pro-Palestinian supermodel Bella Hadid from an advertising campaign following criticism from Israel due to its reference to the 1972 Munich Olympics. Hadid had been chosen to promote Adidas’ SL72 trainers, originally launched during the 1972 Olympics.
The campaign, which was part of a series reviving classic trainers, faced backlash when images of Hadid wearing the shoes were shared.
Israel’s official account on X (formerly Twitter) objected to Hadid being “the face of [the Adidas] campaign,” citing that “eleven Israelis were murdered by Palestinian terrorists during the Munich Olympics.” In response, Adidas apologized and announced it would “revise” the campaign.
Hadid has a history of criticizing the Israeli government and supporting Palestinians. On October 23, she posted on Instagram, lamenting the loss of innocent lives and urging followers to pressure their leaders to protect civilians in Gaza.
This incident is not the first time Adidas has severed ties with celebrity ambassadors over accusations of antisemitism. In October 2022, Adidas ended its partnership with rapper Kanye West after he was suspended from Instagram and Twitter for offensive posts. Adidas stated that West’s comments and actions were “unacceptable, hateful and dangerous,” violating the company’s values of diversity, inclusion, mutual respect, and fairness.
