Morocco Fumes over Adidas Design of Algerian Football Jersey

Algerian players are pictured during a friendly football match with Guinea on September 23, 2022 in Oran. (AFP)
Algerian players are pictured during a friendly football match with Guinea on September 23, 2022 in Oran. (AFP)
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Morocco Fumes over Adidas Design of Algerian Football Jersey

Algerian players are pictured during a friendly football match with Guinea on September 23, 2022 in Oran. (AFP)
Algerian players are pictured during a friendly football match with Guinea on September 23, 2022 in Oran. (AFP)

The Moroccan government called on sports apparel company Adidas to pull off the market its new jersey collection for Algeria’s national football team, alleging that the featured mosaic pattern amounted to “cultural appropriation” of Moroccan heritage.

Morocco’s Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication said in a statement that the design on the jerseys of the rival North African team depicts a traditional mosaic of colored earthenware tiles, known in Morocco as zellige.

“It’s cultural appropriation, an attempted robbery of a form of traditional Moroccan cultural heritage,” the statement said.

Zellige art and craftwork is present and practiced across North Africa and Andalusia, an autonomous region of Spain.

Adidas did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press.

A lawyer for the Moroccan government, Mourad Elajouti told the AP he was instructed by the culture ministry to send “a legal warning” to Adidas.

In an email to Adidas executives, Elajouti demanded that the German company remove the collection within two weeks or release a statement “to identify the zellige art of Morocco as an inspiration” for the design of the Algerian team’s jerseys.

Adidas unveiled the new design last week, saying on its Middle East and North Africa Instagram account that the “Algeria culture wear collection” was inspired by the “architectural design of the iconic El Mechouar Palace” in the northern Algerian city of Tlemcen.

Morocco made its complaint as tensions between the two North African neighbors have deepened. They stem largely from a dispute over the Western Sahara, a territory claimed by Morocco as its own.



The Camera Never Lies: Electronic Line Calls in Focus Again as Zverev Takes Photo of Ball Mark 

Tennis - Madrid Open - Park Manzanares, Madrid, Spain - April 27, 2025 Germany's Alexander Zverev takes a picture of the court with a phone during his round of 32 match against Spain's Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. (Reuters)
Tennis - Madrid Open - Park Manzanares, Madrid, Spain - April 27, 2025 Germany's Alexander Zverev takes a picture of the court with a phone during his round of 32 match against Spain's Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. (Reuters)
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The Camera Never Lies: Electronic Line Calls in Focus Again as Zverev Takes Photo of Ball Mark 

Tennis - Madrid Open - Park Manzanares, Madrid, Spain - April 27, 2025 Germany's Alexander Zverev takes a picture of the court with a phone during his round of 32 match against Spain's Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. (Reuters)
Tennis - Madrid Open - Park Manzanares, Madrid, Spain - April 27, 2025 Germany's Alexander Zverev takes a picture of the court with a phone during his round of 32 match against Spain's Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. (Reuters)

Alexander Zverev is convinced there was a defect in the electronic line calling system during his Madrid Open win on Sunday after the German risked a hefty fine by pulling out his phone to take a photograph of a contested call.

The top seed overcame Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 2-6 7-6(3) 7-6(0) to reach the last 16 of the claycourt tournament but was frustrated by an incident in the second set when a backhand from his opponent was called in by the tracking technology.

Zverev appealed to chair umpire Mohamed Lahyani to take a look but was rebuffed, and the world number two was then warned for unsportsmanlike conduct after pulling his phone out of his bag and taking a picture of the spot.

"I honestly think there was a defect in the system. There was a mistake in the system in that moment," said Zverev, who later posted the photo on Instagram.

"It's not like one millimeter in, one millimeter out, it was like four-five centimeters. That's why I went to the umpire and said 'Please, come down to have a look at this, I'm not crazy'."

Reuters has contacted the ATP for comment.

Earlier this month, women's world number one Aryna Sabalenka also took a photo of a disputed ball mark during a match in Stuttgart and was warned for unsportsmanlike conduct.

The ATP has adopted the line calling system for all of its tournaments from this year, and while Zverev said he was a fan of the technology he was shocked by the incident in Madrid.

"It's going to be interesting to see what happens now, what kind of fine I'll get, even though I'm right," he said.

"I hope I don't get a fine, because obviously, in my opinion, I'm completely in the right and I should not get fined for this."