Nike has officially ended its working relationship with boxing champ Manny Pacquaio, reacting to negative comments he made about gay relationships.
Though the boxing star and Philippine Senate candidate Manny Pacquiao apologized Tuesday for denouncing people in gay relationships as “worse than animals,” he said he stood by his opposition to same-sex marriage.
This wasn’t nearly enough to win favor back with Nike.
“It’s just common sense,” Pacquiao said in remarks posted online by the TV5 network. “Have you seen any animal having male-to-male or female-to-female relations? If you have male-to-male or female-to-female (relationships), then people are worse than animals.”
Never Miss a Beat
Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights.
Nike’s official statement reads:
“We find Manny Pacquiao’s comments abhorrent.”
“Nike strongly opposes discrimination of any kind and has a long history of supporting and standing up for the rights of the LGBT community.”
“We no longer have a relationship with Manny Pacquiao.”
