Adidas pull out of sponsorship
On Friday sportswear giant Adidas ended its association with the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). It is about time these major organisation withdrew money from organisations who seem to do little to actually stop drug use or money payments.
Quite frankly anyone involved in doping should be banned for life and sponsors should have withdrawn their sponsorship from FIFA for allowing the World Cup ballot to be bought. All FIFA did was have another election using the same people who had been involved with the last leader and his corruption. A clean slate should have been drawn and as we were the first to stand up and say this isn't right, a Brit should have been appointed to clean the game up. That could have been promoted as the originators of the game re-establishing its image. Great PR for sponsors to be involved with. An opportunity lost.
The Adidas deal was supposed to run until 2019 but they pulled out after former IAAF president Lamine Diack and other top officials implicated in bribery to keep quiet failed tests by Russian athletes.
The Adidas deal was supposed to run until 2019 but they pulled out after former IAAF president Lamine Diack and other top officials implicated in bribery to keep quiet failed tests by Russian athletes.
Adidas wanted out in January and new president Seb Coe has been trying to convince them to stay on as a sponsor but to no avail. An Adidas suggested the deal was terminated by mutual agreement, well the IAAF could hardly refuse to accept it could they!
"The two sides have decided by mutual agreement to end their partnership at the end of 2016.
"We want to thank the IAAF for their successful and professional cooperation and we wish it the best for the future."
Nestle ended its children's athletics sponsorship accord with the IAAF in February because of the "negative publicity" surrounding the world athletics body.
"We believe this could negatively impact our reputation and image and will therefore terminate our existing agreement with the IAAF, established in 2012."
Lamine Diack is facing corruption charges and is currently under house arrest in France. His son, Papa Missata Diack, a former IAAF marketing consultant, is in Senegal and is also wanted by French authorities. It is believed he took bribes from Russia also.
It is essential that sport is transparent and the lead should come from governing bodies. When an employee charged with upholding standards fails to maintain them his employment should be terminated. There should be zero tolerance. Unfortunately the opposite seems to happen.
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