Adidas earnings up sharply

Europe's largest sports equipment company said its sales rose by 17.7 percent in the third quarter year-on-year, to total 4.76 billion euros ($5.17 billion). Sales were helped by the launch of new soccer boots and kits for freshly-won partners Manchester United and Juventus, the Italian champion team.

Adidas reported also reported a 26.5-percent surge in operating profit for the quarter, with bottom-line earnings coming in at 314 million euros.

The company said the positive results were also attributable to the strong performance of its fitness subsidiary Reebok.

Don't link us to the scandals

Some analysts had expected Adidas to do much worse as a result of FIFA's huge corruption scandal. The firm is the elite soccer organisation's long-standing sponsor.

"The image of our products has never been better; so I'm definitely convinced that consumers clearly differentiate between us as a company and the brand and what's going on in FIFA," Adidas Chief Executive Herbert Hainer told reporters.

The company had faced criticism last month after declining to join other major sponsors in demanding the immediate departure of FIFA President Sepp Blatter after Swiss authorities opened a criminal investigation into him.

Hainer said Adidas was not part of a scandal involving a payment to FIFA by the German Football Association (DFB), but added he expected the organization to do all it could to clear up the matter.

hg/nz (Reuters, dpa)