A spokesperson for Puma announced that "the German brand will end its sponsorship of the Israeli national soccer team when its contract expires in 2024." The spokesperson clarified that the decision is unrelated to the ongoing confrontations between Israel and Hamas, explaining that this decision was planned since 2022 and is not connected to calls for boycotts against companies with business interests tied to Israel.
The spokesperson stated in an email sent to Reuters: "While two national teams have recently signed, including a new team that will be announced later this year, some contracts with national football federations will end in 2024, including the Israeli and Serbian federations."
Puma replaced Adidas as the sponsor and kit manufacturer for the Israeli national team in 2018. This deal made the German sportswear brand a target for boycott calls, which intensified following the start of the "Al-Aqsa Flood" operation and the Israeli bombardment of Gaza. In response, the company stated that it "does not support soccer teams in the settlements and that its Israeli distributor has no branches in the settlements." The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement credited Adidas's decision to end its sponsorship of the Israeli national team in 2018.
