Business & Tech

Under Armour Recalls 'Band of Ballers' Shirt

The design was 'not reflective of our values,' company said in a statement.

Under Armour is backpedaling after some took offense to its “Band of Ballers” tee shirt.

The shirt’s imagery mimics the Pulitzer prize-winning photograph of the flag-raising on Iwo Jima in World War II; but instead of Marines raising a flagpole, it showed “ballers” lifting a basketball hoop.

In response to criticism in recent days, Under Armour issued a formal apology and pulled the design.

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”...we deeply regret and apologize that a t-shirt that was not reflective of our values in honoring and supporting our country’s heroes went on sale,” Under Armour wrote on its Facebook page over the weekend. “Supporting those who serve our country has been part of our brand’s DNA since the very beginning...”

The company reports it has taken the Band of Ballers shirt off the market.

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This is not the first time people have gotten upset about use of the Iwo Jima photo.

After TIME magazine used a tree instead of the flagpole in a cover image for a 2007 issue about global warming, Iwo Jima veteran Donald Mates told The Daily Mail: ”It’s an absolute disgrace. Whoever did it is going to hell.”

A British Airways union involved in a labor dispute also came under fire for using the image on materials to further its campaign in 2010, which the head of the Marine Corps War Memorial Foundation at the time said was “repugnant,” according to Marine Corps Times.

Since it was taken on Feb. 23, 1945, the picture by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal has become arguably “the most reproduced and parodied photo in history,” according to the U.S. Naval Institute.

Screenshot from What’s Happening Today/YouTube.

Statement from Under Armour:

Under Armour has the utmost respect and admiration for the men and women on active duty and veterans who have served our country. As such, we deeply regret and apologize that a t-shirt that was not reflective of our values in honoring and supporting our country’s heroes went on sale. We have taken immediate action to remove it from retail and will take great measures to ensure this does not happen again. Supporting those who serve our country has been part of our brand’s DNA since the very beginning, and through our partnerships and by working directly with military organizations, it will always serve as the foundation of our efforts to give back.


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