If Adidas ends its funding of the athletics governing body, it would not just be a reaction to doping but also a sign of a shift towards spending on individual sports stars and teams who can promote brands directly to fans via social media.
The BBC said the Germ-an sportswear firm, who-se 11-year deal made it the biggest sponsor of the International Associat-ion of Athletics Federa-tions, had decided against continuing with the contract as a direct result of doping and corruption allegations that emerged in December.
Neither Adidas nor the IAAF would confirm the report, but such a move would fit in with a trend towards sponsors like Adidas feeling less bound to sports governing bodies as the ultimate gatekeepers to fans.
“The advent of digital means there is less need for the event platforms. Fans don’t interact with the governing bodies. They engage with the sport, the teams and the individuals,” said Rupert Pratt, co-founder of sports agency Generate.
Adidas is locked in a global battle with Nike for brand supremacy. But its pockets are not as deep as its U.S. arch rival - despite a recent hike its marketing budget is still about 50 percent less - increasing the need for it to be more discriminating rather than fight for every deal.
Under former boss Horst Dassler, Adidas practically invented the idea of long-term deals with sporting federations like FIFA and the Olympics to get its logo onto the field. It is now focusing more on contracts with the highest-profile players, clubs and national teams and less on federations. This trend was shown last year when Adidas decided against renewing its contract with the US Natio-nal Basketball Associ-ation so it could invest more in players like James Harden of the Houston Rockets, who struck a 13-year deal worth a reported $200 million.
Although Adidas has been the official kit provider to the last three Summer Olympics, it decided against sponsoring the 2016 Rio Games, saying it had already done a lot to boost the brand in Brazil. In the case of the Rio Games, Nike swooped in to fill the role, as it will with the NBA contract from 2017. Adidas agreed to pay 750 million pounds ($1.1 billion) to replace Nike as sponsor of English soccer side Manchester United for a decade, a record kit deal for the sport. An Adidas spokeswoman said deals with sports federations were assessed on a case-by-case basis depending on how likely they were to drive sales.
