Adidas sued over Kanye West partnership, fallout

Adidas is facing a class-action lawsuit from investors who allege the company knew about offensive remarks and harmful behaviour from Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, years before ending its partnership with him.

The German sportsbrand cut ties with its star collaborator in late October, following Ye’s antisemitic comments on social media and in interviews.

At the time, Adidas said the company “does not tolerate antisemitism and any other sort of hate speech” and called Ye’s remarks and actions “unacceptable, hateful and dangerous.”

Weeks before the decision, at Paris Fashion Week, Ye also wore a shirt with a “White Lives Matter” slogan — which the Anti-Defamation League categorises a white supremacist phrase that originated as “a racist response to the Black Lives Matter movement.”

The current lawsuit, filed in US District Court in Oregon on Friday, claims that Adidas was aware of the potential harm that Ye’s problematic behaviour could cause the company for some time — pointing to earlier incidents, including 2018 comments where Ye suggested slavery was a “choice” and reports of Ye making antisemitic statements in front of Adidas staff.

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The lawsuit — which represents people who bought Adidas securities between May 3, 2018, and February 21, 2023 — also alleges that Adidas failed to take precautionary measures to limit financial losses if the Ye partnership were to end.

The suit accuses Adidas, the company’s former chief executive officer Kasper Rørsted and chief financial officer Harm Ohlmeyer of being aware of or “recklessly” disregarding false or misleading statements surrounding the partnership with Ye, who is not listed as a defendant in the suit.

The suit cites a Wall Street Journal article from November, which reported that executives, including Rørsted, had discussions dating back to 2018 about the risks of Ye’s actions and the possibility of cutting ties with the artist.