Sponsors Furious, Vikings Again Deactivate Adrian Peterson Over Child Abuse Charges

Sponsors — and fans — are furious that the Minnesota Vikings placed Adrian Peterson on active duty and announced he would be playing in next Sunday’s game. Now, he’s off again.

Adrian Peterson has been dropped by Wheaties. Nike has pulled merchandise with his name off store shelves. Radisson Hotels has suspended its sponsorship of the entire Vikings team. And Anheuser-Busch, Pepsico, McDonald’s, Campbell’s Soup, and Visa have all issued strong statements warning the NFL it had better take decisive action on domestic violence after the Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson cases have stunned much of America.

UPDATE: “We have suspended our contract with Adrian Peterson,” says Nike.

Anheuser-Busch, makers of Budweiser, Stella Artois, Michelob, Bass Pale Ale, and Beck’s beer brands, pays the NFL $200 million annually in sponsorship fees. 

“We are not yet satisfied with the league’s handling of behaviors that so clearly go against our own company culture and moral code,” Anheuser-Busch told the NFL in a public statement. “We have shared our concerns and expectations with the league.”

The NY Daily News reports that yesterday, despite the scandals, “NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was nowhere to be found. But the possible impact on the NFL’s wallet clearly got his attention.”

Pepsico, which pumps about $100 million a year into the NFL coffers for the rights to advertise its products, also chimed in.

“Domestic violence is completely unacceptable,” the company said in a statement. “We are encouraged to see the NFL is now treating this with the seriousness it deserves.”

“Radisson takes this matter very seriously, particularly in light of our longstanding commitment to the protection of children,” the company said in a statement. “We are closely following the situation and effective immediately, Radisson is suspending its limited sponsorship of the Minnesota Vikings while we evaluate the facts and circumstances.”

Also, Nike pulled all of its Peterson gear from the shelves of sporting goods stores in the Twin Cities. Earlier, McDonald’s, Visa and Campbell’s Soup served notice that they expect the NFL to do something fast about domestic violence.

“Domestic violence and abuse are unacceptable behaviors and have no place in sports, or anywhere,” McDonald’s said in a statement. “As McDonald’s is a family brand, we’ve communicated our concerns to the league, and we expect it to take strong and necessary actions to address these issues.”

“We expect the NFL to take appropriate action,” [Campbell’s Soup] said in a statement. “We have shared our views with the NFL.”

A second Adrian Peterson child abuse case came to light Monday, likely motivating Vikings owners to announce early this morning they are changing course and essentially deactivating Peterson, after stating he would be back to play Sunday. Now, Peterson will not be playing in Sunday’s game. Vikings owners came under fire after the announcement Monday.

Calling it “a complete reversal,” the AP reports:

“After giving the situation additional thought, we have decided this is the appropriate course of action for the organization and for Adrian,” the statement signed by team owners Zygi and Mark Wilf said.

 

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