Adidas has been criticized for choosing to use an apparently male model to advertise the range of women’s swimwear in their Pride 2023 collection.
The sportswear giant has been accused of ‘wiping out women’ and has been the target of the latest backlash against ‘wakeful marketing’.
It comes just a month after Bud Light saw their sales plummet after teaming up with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, 26, in their disastrous campaign.
The swimsuit range is part of Adidas’ ‘Pride 2023’ collection and is on sale for $70 on the website in the women’s section.
But it’s not clear if the model is male or transgender, despite a hairy chest and a visible bulge. The description states they are 6ft 2in and have a 34″ bust and a 27″ waist.
The design was created by South African designer Rich Mnisi, with Adidas defending the suit as “a celebration of self-expression, imagination and the unwavering belief that love unites.”
Adidas have been criticized for using an apparently male model to show off new swimwear as part of their ‘Pride 2023’ collection (pictured)
But the choice of model sparked outrage on social media, with the hashtag ‘Boycott Adidas’ trending.
American swimmer Riley Gaines is also on the list of high-profile names to score with the company.
She said: “I don’t understand why companies do this voluntarily to themselves.
They could have at least said the suit is “unisex,” but they didn’t because it’s about erasing women.
“Have you ever wondered why we hardly see this going the other way? Women’s swimsuits don’t have bulges.’
Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene also denounced the new marketing ploy, adding, “Who is telling these big corporations to alienate women, half the population, to market to transgender people who are less than 1%?”
‘Companies are there for profit, not for politics. It does not make any sense. Who says they have to do this?’
South Carolina representative Nancy Mace said, “I’m old enough to remember when women modeled bathing suits for women, not men.”
American swimmer Riley Gaines, a staunch advocate for women’s rights, was among the first to criticize Adidas for the move
The swimsuits are flaunted by a model with a distinct crutch bulge and chest hair peeking out from the top
The same model appeared wearing a women’s T-shirt in clothing seen in the women’s section
The model wore a women’s T-shirt with the “Love Wins” logo
“Adidas is launching a new range of women’s swimwear, the ‘Pride Collection’ — with MEN to model sports bras and WOMEN’s swimsuits, oh f**k off. Honestly,’ said another person.
The post had been seen by more than five million Twitter users, many targeting the brand as well.
“Look at that female bulge…Adidas furiously uses organic male models to advertise swimsuits and bras for women,” wrote another.
“Nothing sells a bathing suit like a hairy chest and a bulge in the crotch,” wrote a third.
Many also joked that Adidas and Nike are battling it out over who can “go bankrupt” first after the competitors “wake up more and more.”
In April, Nike used trans social media star Mulvaney to promote their activewear.
The transgender actress posted “Warn the media – I’m entering my training era” alongside photos showing Nike’s range.
After choosing Mulvaney as a brand ambassador to show off women’s clothing, a ‘Burn Bra Challenge’ started on TikTok and many condemned Nike’s choice on social media.
The same model appeared wearing a women’s T-shirt in clothing sold in the women’s section of their website
The T-shirt range is part of Adidas’ Pride 2023′ collection and is available for purchase on the website in the women’s section
America’s flagship beer brand has had the damage under control since Mulvaney shared a series of partnered messages with her 11 million social media followers on April 1
Adidas’ Pride line also includes t-shirts, shorts, and sportswear that read “Love Wins,” which are also worn by ostensibly male models.
The swimwear controversy comes after Adidas cut ties with Kanye West over anti-Semitic comments on social media, which cost the company $440 million in sales in the first quarter of 2023.
Bud Light, the flagship American beer brand, and its parent company, Anheuser-Busch, have had the damage under control since Mulvaney shared a series of partnered messages with her 11 million social media followers on April 1.
Mulvaney sparked widespread outrage with a post of her sitting in a bathtub while showing off her face from a custom Bud Light can.
She posted under the hashtag #budlightpartner to coincide with the NCAA March Madness tournament, before joking that she didn’t know what sport she was promoting.
Due to the disastrous marketing bid, sales of the US flagship beer have fallen by as much as 20 percent every week.
For the week ending May 6, Bud Light retail sales in the US were down 23.6 percent compared to the previous year. And the week before, ending April 29, sales were down 23.3 percent.
This follows a drop in sales in the week ending April 22, which was 21.4 percent. And seven days earlier, the dip was 17 percent, according to NielsenIQ data provided to Dailymail.com by Bump Williams Consultancy.