German sportswear company Adidas apologized on Monday after an advertising campaign featuring a former Israeli soldier prompted a backlash and calls for a boycott.
The campaign featured Shalev Biton, whose left leg was amputated after he was wounded while serving in the Israeli army in 2021, to promote Adidas's Single Shoe service.
"We recognize that an image used in a recent local activation by the local team has raised concerns and strong reactions," Adidas said in a statement, according to a report by the Times of Israel.
"It was never our intent to cause offense and we apologize for anyone affected," the company added, describing the promotion as a local initiative rather than part of a global campaign.
Biton was one of 11 disabled athletes featured on posters displayed at Adidas stores in Israel.
Pro-Palestinian activists criticized the decision to include a former Israeli soldier in a campaign centered on amputees, contrasting the promotion with the thousands of Palestinians who have lost limbs during Israel's war on the Gaza.
The World Health Organization estimates published in May said Gaza has recorded more than 5,000 traumatic limb amputations and over 22,000 major extremity injuries since October 2023. Up to a quarter of those with life-changing injuries were children.
Spanish actor Javier Bardem was among those who urged consumers to boycott the company over the promotion.
Adidas said its Single Shoe service was intended to promote inclusion by allowing people with limb differences to only purchase the shoe they need.
The company introduced the service in 23 European countries in January, offering individual shoes for 50% of the price of a pair at Adidas-owned stores and outlets. It was developed in consultation with disability groups and organizations, including ParalympicsGB.
Adidas said the program was expanding across Europe, Asia and the Middle East, including Palestine, the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Egypt.
The company said it would "continue to listen, learn and work to ensure that our actions reflect the inclusive values we stand for."
Adidas has faced similar controversies on several occasions over the past decade and a half.
In 2012, the company faced boycott calls from Arab sports officials over its sponsorship of the Jerusalem Marathon, whose route passed through Occupied East Jerusalem. Arab youth and sports ministers announced a boycott of companies sponsoring the event, arguing that the race was being used to reinforce Israeli claims over the city.
Adidas was no longer among the marathon's sponsors the following year.
The company came under renewed pressure in 2018, when more than 130 Palestinian football clubs and sports associations urged Adidas to end its sponsorship of the Israel Football Association.
Campaigners objected to the association's inclusion of clubs based in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Adidas said at the time that it operated in a "politically neutral way," while adding that it supported human rights standards and had raised the issue with FIFA.
The company later ended its sponsorship of the Israeli association, although it did not publicly attribute the decision to the Palestinian campaign.
Another backlash erupted in July 2024 after Adidas removed Palestinian-American model Bella Hadid from a retro shoe campaign referencing the 1972 Munich Olympics after Israel criticized her inclusion.
Hadid, who has long spoken publicly in support of Palestinian rights, reportedly hired lawyers over the decision. Adidas later apologized to her and other campaign partners, saying it had made an "unintentional mistake" and was revising the campaign.
The company did not reinstate Hadid, however, and its handling of the episode triggered further criticism and calls for a boycott on social media.
