Adidas to dress Belarusian footballers. What does the company say?
UEFA announced that the Belarusian national football team will receive kits from Adidas. Neither the Union of European Football Associations nor the German manufacturer saw anything shameful in this cooperation with Minsk, writes "Belsat".
New Adidas kits for nine European national football teams. Photo: uefa.com
The Belarusian national football team has a new technical sponsor, media reported on May 1. On this day, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) announced that Adidas would produce apparel for ten teams under the special UEFA Kit Assistance program. It has existed since 2007 and "provides small national associations with kits for matches and training, ensuring that their teams can perform in high-quality, customized kits that reflect their football culture and history."
Adidas will be a partner for two years for the national teams of Andorra, Belarus, Cyprus, Faroe Islands, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, North Macedonia, Malta, and San Marino. The UEFA website presents the kits of all teams except the Belarusian one.
The German company effectively refused to comment on cooperation with the Belarusian team: in response to a "Belsat" inquiry, the firm advised contacting the Union of European Football Associations.
The UEFA press service told "Belsat" that there is no exclusive cooperation with Belarus: "We draw attention to the fact that the UEFA Kit Assistance program is open to all UEFA member associations."
They also explained why they did not show the equipment designed for Belarusian footballers:
«Belarus decided not to present its new kit».
To other questions, including regarding a possible violation of sanctions, the Union of European Football Associations did not respond, stating that "at this stage, we have no further comments."
Until recently, the Belarusian national football team was dressed by the Italian company Errea Sport. In 2022, this manufacturer was also chosen as a partner for the UEFA Kit Assistance program.