Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
MADRID (AP) — Adidas says Spain's soccer federation has no grounds for terminating its contract with the sports apparel company, and will fight to keep the agreement in place.
The Spanish soccer federation said Monday it was ending its contract with Adidas and opened negotiations with other apparel companies. Adidas has had a deal with Spain since 1991 and the current contract was due to expire in 2026, but the soccer federation said it no longer meets "the criteria of legality, transparency and fairness that the federation considers minimally acceptable."
Adidas told The Associated Press in a statement on Tuesday that "the contract has been consistently upheld by both parties and there are no grounds for termination."
The German company reinforced its "commitment to uphold the contract until the mutually agreed-upon date of expiration and, if need be, the company will resort to any measure to protect its interests."
Spain had said it was looking for a new partner after "months of unsuccessful negotiations with Adidas."
It said it would continue to fulfill its contract with the German company until a new partner was found and the current deal was terminated.
Adidas said it "has been proudly committed to offering the best service and providing top-quality products to the Governing Body of Football in Spain."
___
More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/apf-Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP\_Sports
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
