Adidas appoints boss of rival Puma as CEO after Ye fallout

BERLIN (AP) — Adidas has appointed Bjørn Gulden, the CEO of rival Puma, as its new chief executive, and he will take over the German sportswear brand in January as the company weathers the fallout from its split with the rapper formerly known as Kanye West.

Gulden will replace Kasper Rorsted, Adidas' CEO since 2016, whose departure was announced in August. Adidas said at the time that Rorsted would hand over during the course of next year but said on Tuesday that he and the supervisory board “mutually agreed” that he will step down and leave the company Friday.

Chief Financial Officer Harm Ohlmeyer will head Adidas until the end of the year. He takes the helm temporarily after the company ended a partnership with Ye late last month amid mounting outcry over the rapper’s offensive and antisemitic remarks.

Adidas, which followed other companies in cutting ties with Ye, is expected to take a hit of up to 250 million euros (dollars) to its net income this year from the decision to immediately stop production of its line of Yeezy products and is left searching for another star to help it compete with ever-larger rival Nike.