In October 2022, Adidas ended its blockbuster Yeezy partnership with Kanye West over his antisemitic remarks, a split that erased his billionaire status and cost the company up to 250 million euros — the most spectacular corporate divorce in modern celebrity history.
The unraveling began at Paris Fashion Week, where West — now known as Ye — wore a 'White Lives Matter' T-shirt at his Yeezy show. He then posted that he would go 'death con 3 on Jewish people' on X, doubled down in interviews including with Tucker Carlson, and praised conspiracy theories on podcasts. Twitter and Instagram suspended his accounts, his talent agency CAA dropped him, Gap announced it would stop carrying Yeezy products, and JPMorgan Chase cut ties with him. Jewish organizations and celebrities condemned the remarks, and pressure mounted on Adidas, his most important partner, to act.
On October 25, 2022, after placing the deal 'under review,' Adidas announced it was ending the partnership immediately, halting Yeezy production and payments to Ye. 'Adidas does not tolerate antisemitism and any other sort of hate speech,' the company said, calling his comments 'unacceptable, hateful and dangerous.' The financial stakes were enormous: Yeezy generated nearly $2 billion in annual revenue, and Adidas warned the split would hit 2022 net income by up to 250 million euros. Forbes promptly removed West from its billionaire list, and his divorce settlement with Kim Kardashian reportedly obligated him to pay around $200,000 a month in child support.
The aftermath dragged on for years. Adidas sat on hundreds of millions of dollars of unsold Yeezy inventory, eventually selling it off in 2023 with proceeds going to charities; in October 2024 the two sides reached a settlement ending all legal proceedings with no money changing hands. Adidas shareholders sued, claiming the company had hidden West's behavior — a San Francisco court and then the Ninth Circuit ruled for Adidas, finding that a reasonable investor knows celebrity collaborations carry risk. Separately, at least five lawsuits involving West's Donda Academy alleged a hostile work environment, discrimination, and antisemitism, with one former assistant principal winning a default judgment in 2024.
West has never fully recanted. His 2023 album 'Vultures' and continued provocations kept him in the headlines, but the Adidas episode stands as a case study in how fast a personal brand can detonate: a nine-year partnership that made both sides fortunes ended in weeks, and the wreckage — in market value, reputation, and cultural standing — is still being tallied.