Adidas CEO apologises for pink-boot flood at the 2026 FIFA World Cup

On July 30, Adidas chief executive Bjørn Gulden publicly apologised for the “surfeit of pink boots” worn by players throughout the 2026 FIFA World Cup. He described the uniform colour as an accident and said he hoped it would not recur. Five major sports-wear brands—Adidas, Nike, Puma, New Balance and Skechers—released football boots in nearly identical fluorescent pink shades, resulting in wall-to-wall pink cleats on the pitch.

The Straits TimesAdidas Apologises for Wave of Pink Boots at World Cup, Calls It an 'Accident' adidas apologizes for pink World Cup boots

Industry analysts note that the convergence stemmed from shared trend-agency briefs issued 18–24 months before the tournament, leading multiple suppliers to forecast the same colour palette. Because brands develop collections independently, they typically lack visibility into rivals’ colour plans. Gulden suggested that retailers, who stock products from several manufacturers, could have flagged the emerging overlap but did not.

Adidas Apologises for Wave of Pink Boots at World Cup, Calls It an 'Accident'

—but the simultaneous adoption across brands was “strange.” He reiterated that Adidas had no information on what Nike, Puma or New Balance were doing and that the coordination gap lay further down the supply chain. Adidas also pledged to introduce greater colour variety when the club season resumes in August.

adidas apologizes for pink World Cup boots

Despite an upbeat earnings outlook—Adidas raised its full-year 2026 revenue growth guidance to 9-10 percent and kept its operating-profit target at €2.3 billion—the apology coincided with a sharp sell-off. Adidas shares fell nearly 18 percent on the day, a move Gulden said he could not explain.

adidas apologizes for pink World Cup boots

“Retailers normally would tell you: ‘Hang on a minute, you’re all doing the same colour’,” — Bjorn Gulden, adidas chief executive

The Straits Times