Kanye West‘s termination from adidas has reportedly led to the company losing over a billion dollars in revenue for 2023, and the athletic brand could lose even more money as the year goes on.
adidas was forced to sever ties with Ye and his Yeezy clothing line after the controversial Chicago rapper went on multiple antisemitic tirades in 2022. Ye has been relentlessly criticized for months over his repeated antisemitic comments, and despite the pushback and financial loss he’s endured, has continued to double down on his love of bigoted German mass murderer Hitler
In his most recent interview with Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes in Los Angeles, Ye went so far as to demand that Jewish people forgive Hitler and “let it go.”
adidas is blaming Kanye directly for its financial loss, which so far is estimated to be around $1.3billion in 2023. According to a statement obtained by TMZ, the brand is in possession of numerous Yeezy designs it’s unable to sell. adidas had previously claimed in November it was going to repurpose said designs under a different name.
The statement added that adidas could be drained of an additional $534million if it’s unable to repurpose the remaining Yeezy clothes, with CEO Bjørn Gulden adding that “the numbers speak for themselves.”
“We are currently not performing the way we should,” Gulden wrote, adding 2023 will serve as a transitional year for the company. There is reportedly a clause in Kanye’s contract with adidas that states the Chicago hitmaker would receive a reduced fee if Yeezy designs were sold without his affiliation, but adidas informed TMZ it doesn’t want to give Kanye another penny of its money.
While Ye apologized for his “hurtful” comments in an October sit-down with Piers Morgan, he’s since continued to support Nazis and attack Jewish people. In January, Ye was spotted donning a T-shirt with the German Reich symbol on it while going on a shopping spree in Balenciaga.
Kanye West also tied the knot with Bianca Censori in a private ceremony at the top of 2023, but while the pair have made plans to have him meet the latter’s family in Australia, the Aussie government may stop Ye from entering the country due to the aforementioned antisemitic remarks.
Australia has a long history of turning away people with antisemitic beliefs and Australia’s Education Minister Jason Clare said Ye would face the same vetting process as other applicants who apply for a visa.
“I expect that if he does apply, he would have to go through the same process and answer the same questions,” Clare told Nine Network TV.
Australian Jewish groups have already called for Ye to be barred from the country. Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief Peter Wertheim told officials on January 24 (via Sky News): “We’ve made the case that this particular individual does not meet the character test and that it would be in the national interest not to grant him a visa and we set out our reasons in some detail.”
Andrew Giles, Australia’s Immigration Minister, will have the final say on whether Ye gets into the country.
