Sports apparel giant’s case against designers is dismissed after “confidential settlement.”
BY JACOB PALMER | DIGITAL NEWS EDITOR
Nike’s case against a trio of designers was dismissed after a “confidential settlement” was reached.
From Oregonlive:
The settlement was announced in a brief statement by the office of Markowitz Herbold, which was representing the three designers: Denis Dekovic, Marc Dolce and Mark Miner.
“The case was resolved through a confidential settlement,” Matt Levin, attorney for the three, said in a written statement. Levin was traveling and could not be reached for further comment, a co-worker said.
As the case comes to a close, the sports apparel giant has been swept up in an investigation of corruption in FIFA, soccer’s governing body.
A Wall Street Journal report, published Friday, reveals high-ranking Nike officials were present when a contract with Brazilian soccer officials was signed in 1996.
Three of the indictment’s 161 pages address an unidentified “multinational sportswear company headquartered in the United States” that worked to secure the footwear and apparel sponsorship for Brazil’s national soccer team in 1996. The federal document suggests a middleman might have bribed someone at the Brazilian soccer federation to help grease the deal, though it does not indicate the company knew anything about it.
The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that the company is Nike. The Journal also reported that Nike co-founder Phil Knight, then-company president Tom Clarke, soccer chief Sandy Bodecker and soccer sports-marketing director Cees van Nieuwenhuizen signed the contract in 1996 with the Confederation of Brazilian Football. The Journal identified the document signers by obtaining and translating a copy of the contract that is included in the record of a Brazilian parliamentary inquiry that took place in 2001.
(SOURCE: OregonLive.com)
Nike has issued a statement denying the bribery allegations.
