The two neighboring countries have a long history of tensions over the Western Sahara border.
Rage not “over an empty shirt”, but over a… jersey has erupted in Morocco against the German sports goods company Adidas. Morocco’s Ministry of Culture accused the company of “appropriating Moroccan culture in its new jerseys for the Algerian football team.”
Adidas said the design was inspired by Mechouar Palace in Algeria. However, the geometric blue, teal and yellow pattern is a pattern called zellige and is common in Moroccan mosaic tiles, the Moroccan ministry lawyer replied.
The two neighboring countries have a long history of tensions over the Western Sahara border.
Moroccan mosaic
Lawyer Mourad Elajouti wrote on Facebook that he had issued a legal warning to Adidas, on behalf of Morocco’s Ministry of Culture.
In a letter to the company’s chief executive Kasper Rorsted, Mr Elajouti said the new plan constituted cultural appropriation and “an attempt to steal a form of Moroccan cultural heritage and use it outside of its context”.
In this context, he asked the German sportswear brand to remove the design within two weeks.
Mr Elajouti added that the 2022-2023 Algeria national team kit “contributes to the loss and distortion of the identity and history of these [zellige] cultural elements”.
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I am currently a news writer for News Bulletin247 where I mostly cover sports news. I have always been interested in writing and it is something I am very passionate about. In my spare time, I enjoy reading and spending time with my family and friends.
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