Adidas enforced a ban on clients customizing German football kits with the number 44, reporting concerns over its resemblance to symbols used by World War Two-era Nazi SS units.
An Adidas spokesperson said: “We will block personalization of the jerseys,” acknowledging the depth of the issue.
The symbolic SS rune, originating in 1929 for use by Nazi soldiers, evokes past trauma of atrocities committed during the Holocaust. Adidas spokesperson, Oliver Brüggen, stated that the resemblance was unintentional, but the criticism is still there.
German Football Association (DFB) clarified that the numbers on the shirts were designed in collaboration with the partners and submitted for UEFA review. There were no concerns raised initially, but an alternative design for the number 4 is now in development.
Adidas’s age-old partnership with German football faces difficulty, with the DFB’s decision to switch to American giant, Nike, as the kit manufacturer from 2027 drawing criticism for its perceives lack of patriotism from Economy Minister, Robert Habeck.
Critics have also questioned the choice of pink-color being a part of the away kit, as historian, Michael König, highlighted the “very questionable” design, prompting widespread debate.
The choice of bright pink as the away color leaves the supporters defend it as a symbol of diversity, while opposers argue that it deviates from tradition and only serves commercial interests rather than cultural representation.
