Kanye West and Adidas have officially reached a settlement in their legal dispute, ending a two-year conflict following Adidas’ decision to end their partnership with the artist due to his anti-Semitic comments.
This contract, which was worth $220 million per year and totaled $1.5 billion, was terminated by Adidas in October 2022 after West made offensive statements, including a post where he threatened to go “de.ath-con 3 on Jewish people.” On Tuesday, Adidas announced that they and Kanye West and Adidas reached an out-of-court settlement, concluding all legal matters between them without any financial exchange as part of the agreement.
Adidas’ CEO Bjorn Gulden stated, “There isn’t any more open issues, and there is no… money going either way, and we both move on.” He further noted, “There were tensions on many issues, and… when you put the claims on the right side and you put the claims on the left side, both parties said we don’t need to fight anymore and withdrew all the claims.”
The end of Kanye West and Adidas’ collaboration significantly impacted West’s net worth, causing him to lose his billionaire status and resulting in the loss of other major endorsements. The partnership, which began in 2013 after West left Nike, was expected to span a decade. However, tensions had already been high prior to the termination, with West publicly accusing Adidas executives of taking credit for his ideas. While West owns the Yeezy brand, Adidas compensates him with a yearly royalty fee for product sales.
