The German FA's decision to sign a deal with Nike and end its decades-long association with Adidas has been branded as 'unpatriotic' by a government minister.
On Thursday, the DfB made the shock announcement that domestic brand Adidas would be ditched in favour of Nike from 2027, prompting outrage across the country.
And while the war of words over Nike's new England strip rages on, the US-based giant believes it has landed a coup by becoming the next manufacturer of Germany's gear.
"I can hardly imagine the Germany shirt without the three stripes," Germany's economy minister Robert Habeck said in a statement to AFP. "For me, Adidas and black-red-gold always belonged together," Habeck added, describing the pairing as a "piece of German identity."
Health minister Karl Lauterbach described it, in a post on X, as the "wrong decision", which sees "commerce destroy a tradition and a piece of home."
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But DfB chief executive Holger Blask said the deal, which will run until 2034, was "by far the best financial offer". German media reported that Nike will pay €100m (£86m) a year, which was estimated to be double what was on offer from Adidas.
Nike has been heavily criticised by England fans and politicians on both sides of parliament following the release of a new home kit for this summer's European Championship, which sees an altered cross of St George on the collar.
The sportswear giant has described it as a "playful update", though the real scandal should be the retail price of £124.99 for adults and £119.99 for kids.
The back of the England Euro 2024 kit (PA)It has been slammed as "woke nonsense" by angry fans, with prime minister Rishi Sunak saying: "When it comes to our national flags, we shouldn't mess with them because they're a source of pride, identity, who we are, and they're perfect as they are."
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer also called on Nike to recall the kit and change it. He told the Sun: "It's unifying, it doesn't need to change. We just need to be proud of it. So I think they should just reconsider this and change it back.
"I'm not even sure they can properly explain why they thought they needed to change in the first place. They could also reduce the price of the shirts." Nike say there is no plan to change the strip and the FA is so far standing behind the shirt - though pressure continues to ramp up.
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