Dive Brief:
-
Adidas, the number three sports retailer after Nike and Under Armour, says it will cover the costs any U.S. high school incurs by switching away from using Native American mascots.
-
Such costs can be high as schools replace uniforms and come up with less controversial designs.
-
The move comes as schools confront challenges from Native Americans in their communities to drop names and mascots that tribes say are offensive. The Washington Redskins has lost their trademark protection from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and prominent television announcers have said they won’t use the name during broadcasts of their games.
Dive Insight:
Adidas has little to lose here in dedicating resources to help schools pivot away from names and mascots that tribal communities and others in the U.S. say are racist.
The costs are significant; one Indiana high school says it could cost some $30,000 to make such a change.
But it’s a winning campaign for Adidas, experts say.
“This is a win-win for Adidas,” Bob Dorfman, executive creative director for Baker Street Advertising, told Bloomberg. “Yes, it may cost them money and resources, but it shows their dedication toward a worthwhile cause, builds goodwill and a favorable impression among young athletes, and further spreads their stripes into the lucrative and growing high school sports market.”
The announcement comes as the White House held its Tribal Nations Conference last week, and President Obama and advocates there praised the move.
“They have really come up with a smart, creative approach, which is to say, all right, if we can’t get states to pass laws to prohibit these mascots, then how can we incentivize schools to think differently?” Obama said Thursday. “I don’t know if Adidas made the same offer to a certain NFL team here in Washington, but they might want to think about that as well.”
