London 2012 Watch: Sponsorship Friction Rises Between Nike and Adidas

The Olympic creed states that “the most important thing … is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle.”

Well, that’s just fine for the athletes, but for Nike and Adidas, they are looking not just to fight well, but to conquer.

Business Review Europe reports that “relations between the sportswear giants (are) even more frosty than usual over their access to leading Olympic stars including Paula Radcliffe, Mo Farah and Mark Cavendish.”

The problem stems from the fact that Adidas is an official London 2012 sponsor, and doesn’t want to be giving Nike any kind of free publicity.

In the past, there has been a gentleman’s agreement made between the two sides to allow athletes to get their medals with their own sponsors’ shoes on their feet, but the growing acrimony has kept that from happening this time around.Continue reading...