Puma to end kit deal with Israeli national football team: Puma, a German sportswear manufacturer, said on Tuesday that it was terminating its sponsorship agreement with the Israeli national football team. This decision was made before to the start of the Gaza conflict. Enoughinffo.com
The Israeli squad would no longer be outfitted by Puma starting in 2023, the firm announced, in response to a strategy assessment completed at the end of 2022.
Puma to end kit deal with Israeli national football team
“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 a statement.
“These decisions were taken in 2022 in line with the regular timelines for the design (and) development of the team jerseys,” the spokeswoman said.
The 2018 agreement with Israel sparked demands for a boycott of the sportswear company.
Activists claimed that Puma’s partnership with the Israeli Football Association, which comprises teams from the occupied Palestinian area, endorses unlawful Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
The battle that broke out in Gaza in October between Israel and Hamas has reinforced demands to boycott goods that back Israel.
On October 7, Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip launched an unprecedented onslaught against Israel, killing over 1,200 people, largely civilians, and seizing nearly 240 captives, of whom, according to Israeli sources, 137 are still in Gaza. This marked the beginning of the war.
In retaliation, Israel declared it would destroy Hamas and launched heavy artillery and ground operations in Gaza, killing at least 18,200 people, the majority of them were women and children, according to the health ministry operated by Hamas.
