The Clean Clothes Campaign and Éthique sur l’étiquette are calling on Nike and Adidas, as well as all sportswear brands to create a time-bound roadmap with targets to guarantee the payment of a living wage, earned in a standard working week, adopt more responsible purchasing practices to enable the payment of living wages and publish the actual monthly wages of the workers in its supplier factories as well as the results of their supplies social audits.

With the football World Cup set to kick off, sportswear giants Nike and Adidas gear up to go head for the title of the World’s biggest football-apparel brand. Sponsoring a total of 22 out of the 32 football teams competing for the title, the World Cup is the main stage for Nike and Adidas growing competition for sponsorship and branding. However, while millions of people around the globe are getting ready to cheer on their favourite team during the event, it was revealed that while Nike and Adidas pay record-break amounts to footballers, they do not pay living wages to the female garment workers making their shirts.

Nike and Adidas generate sufficient revenue to be able to pay living wages across their supply chains, but chose to prioritise other areas, such as marketing and sponsorships.