(Football news) The Morocco Cultural Ministry has demanded that Adidas change Algeria’s national team jersey, accusing the German company of “cultural appropriation” with the ministry’s lawyer claiming that the geometric blue, teal and yellow design is a pattern called zellige, which is common in Moroccan mosaics. Adidas have in turn responded to the allegation by claiming that the design was inspired by the Mechouar Palace in Algeria. The two countries have had a longstanding dispute regarding the Western Sahara and as a result, the Ministry’s lawyer Mourad Elajouti has issued a legal warning to Adidas.

A letter to Adidas’ chief executive Kasper Rorsted said that the design was cultural appropriation and "an attempt to steal a form of Moroccan cultural heritage and use it outside its context". The letter demands that Adidas change Algeria’s jersey design in two weeks while also adding that Algeria's 2022-2023 season kit "contributes to the loss and distortion of the identity and history of these [zellige] cultural elements".

 The two countries share a nearly 2,000 km (1,242 miles) border which has been a source of tension in the region since the independence of the French colonial rule. The Sand War of 1963 occurred when Morocco claimed a part of Algeria’s territory. Algeria on the other hand backed the Polisario Front's campaign for Western Sahara's independence from Morocco, leading to the 1975-1991 Western Sahara War. As a result, the border was closed in 1994 for security reasons after a Moroccan hotel was bombed in Marrakesh. In 2021, Algeria cut off diplomatic ties with Morocco, accusing them of “hostile acts” which was called “completely unjustified” by Morocco.

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