German sports company Puma has announced that it will be terminating its sponsorship of Israel’s national football team. Starting in 2024, the sportswear brand will no longer be providing the kit to the team after making the decision not to renew the contract with the Israel Football Association (IFA), a press release said. Puma’s decision to drop Israel’s national football team from its sponsorship portfolio was made for financial reasons, people familiar with the internal discussions told the Financial Times.
“While two newly signed national teams— including a new statement team— will be announced later this year and in 2024, the contracts of some federations such as Serbia and Israel will expire in 2024,” a spokeswoman said in the released statement. “These decisions were taken in 2022 in line with the regular timelines for the design (and) development of the team jerseys,” she added.
The decision was reportedly part of a broader “fewer-bigger-better” strategy to become more selective in sports marketing. According to the note, Puma will soon be announcing a new partnership with a high-profile team.
The deal with Israel, which was signed in 2018, prompted calls to boycott the sportswear brand.
It has been said that the decision was taken a year ago and is claimed to be unrelated to consumer boycott calls amid Israel’s bombardment of Gaza. However, Puma has long been the target of a worldwide Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) campaign since 2018 over its support for Israeli apartheid oppressing millions of Palestinans. According to leaked internal messages, it was revealed that Puma was under tremendous pressure to drop the contract.
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The partnership between the world’s third-biggest sports brand and the Israeli team had sparked international outrage and calls for a complete boycott of all Puma products.
Activists have accused Puma of supporting Israeli settlements in the West Bank– considered illegal by most of the international community – given that the IFA includes clubs based in such settlements.
The company, though, has repeatedly rejected the claims, saying it was only sponsoring the national team and was not involved in club-level activities.
In recent weeks, several brands, such as Puma and Spanish fashion brand Zara, have seen pro-Palestinian demonstrations take place outside their stores around the world for their alleged pro-Israel stance.
The efficacy of such campaigns is underscored by reports of Starbucks facing a $11 billion value loss as a direct result of global boycott efforts. As the push for boycotts gains momentum, activists continue to advocate for accountability, asserting that sustained efforts are yielding tangible results in confronting entities perceived as contributing to genocide. Whether Puma’s withdrawal from Israel stemmed from financial considerations or succumbing to pressure from pro-Palestine supporters, the brand’s decision stands as a concrete testament to the effectiveness of boycotts, proving that with mass mobilization we can make a difference.
