 "British prime minister Rishi Sunak wearing Adidas Samba shoes. The prime minister's shoe choice has created quite the row in the UK. Image Courtesy: @rishisunakmp/Instagram")
What’s in a shoe? Turns out a lot. The Adidas Sambas were hailed as this year’s “it footwear”… “the official shoe of the season”. But not anymore. UK prime minister Rishi Sunak was spotted in the sneakers and now they have been deemed uncool.
The politician has been getting hate online for his choice of footwear. Even British publications have been hitting out at Sunak. They are calling it the end of Adidas Sambas. Here’s why.
Sunak and the Adidas Sambas saga
Sunak was seen wearing the Sambas during an interview at 10 Downing Street to promote his tax policies. The video was posted on Instagram last Thursday.
While he was explaining the Conservative government’s latest tax and childcare policies, it was the shoes that became the talk of the town. The beleaguered premier was sporting a white pair with navy stripes along with skinny trousers and a white shirt.
The footwear appeared new and squeaky clean, as if straight out of the box. This only made observers criticise him more.
The people and the press
Adidas Sambas, the 1950s three-striped sneaker, are loved by both the everyman and celebrities. The shoe has been hailed as a favourite of popstar Rihanna, British singer Harry Styles and American model Bella Hadid.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsIn London, everyone is wearing them. According to the Evening Standard, they’re like rats… you’re never more than six feet away from a pair of Sambas
But maybe like Sunak , the popularity of the footwear is likely to plummet. The reactions have been polarised, with everyone from the people to the press hitting out at the PM.
“His trainers really helped (the video) become easily understandable and relatable for me,” said a social media user sarcastically.
“Absolutely unforgivable,” wrote one X user.
“Rishi sunak didn’t wear those sambas for any reason other than to appear more normal. The guys a fiend for PR and propaganda…,” commented another.
The commentary in the British press has been unflattering. In an article headlined “Can Rishi Sunak leave the Adidas Samba alone, please?”, GQ magazine wrote, “Unacceptable. In a bid to present himself as young and hip (and, quite possibly, as the future SVP of a tax-avoiding tech brand), Sunak took an eternally cool sneaker, and ruined it for everyone. It’s not that guys of his age or ilk shouldn’t be wearing Sambas. Everyone and anyone is welcome to cash in on a genuinely cool archival trainer. It’s just how transparent and cynical it all seems.”
“Adidas Sambas were this year’s coolest shoes – until Rishi Sunak got a pair,” read an article in The Observer written by lifestyle and entertainment journalist Michael Hogan. “Sambas suddenly aren’t just uncool – they’re a bit Tory. The chosen trainers of the lame-duck leader of a dying government.”
“The only place where Sambas now have any street cred is Downing Street. And the clock is ticking on that one,” he added.
Journalist Ed Cumming tweeted, “Thinking of the Adidas Samba community at this difficult time.”
Why the hate?
Sunak is the wealthiest prime minister in British history. He has admitted to having no working-class friends and his failure to use a contactless card when he was an MP grabbed headlines. Hence, his choice of wearing the humble $100 sneakers has been scrutinised.
As the Daily Mail wrote it was an attempt to “try and appear normal”. However, Sunak’s effort to come across as relatable have backfired and how.
It doesn’t help that this comes at a time when Sunak and the Conservative Party are not the most popular.
Support for the governing Conservative Party has fallen to the lowest level in more than four decades as a general election draws nearer in an opinion poll published last month. An Ipsos poll put support for the Conservatives, in power for 14 years, at 20 per cent at the end of February, down seven percentage points in a month, with the opposition Labour Party at 47 per cent.
In December, Sunak saw his popularity drop to its lowest ever. A YouGov survey found that 70 per cent of respondents (seven in ten) had an unfavourable opinion of him, while only 21 per cent said they viewed him favourably.
Politicians and their fashion choices
What politicians wear matters.
The British public was not too pleased that Sunak was wearing the Sambas at 10 Downing. “Even the most ardent sneakerheads know there is a time and a place for a gum sole, and the British public has decided on-camera at 10 Downing Street is neither,” says a piece in CNN.
Compare that to Barack Obama. In 2019, he was seen wearing Stan Smiths at an Obama Foundation event in Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur. The former US president’s pick of footwear was called playful and tasteful. Why the difference in reaction? That’s because this was after his presidency. During his time in the Oval Office, he dressed conservatively, sticking to traditional suits. He once wore a tan suit that created an uproar but since then did not experiment much.
US vice president Kamala Harris was also lauded for wearing sneakers during the 2020 campaign trail. It was seen as a subversion of the rules of political dressing for women in office, where wearing heels or stilettos was considered standard etiquette.
Back in India, a debate ensued in 2019, after then Trinamool lawmakers Mimi Chakraborty and Nusrat Jahan wore pants and tops to the Parliament. The popular Bengali actresses were trolled for their choice of clothes, as most women politicians in the country dress traditionally in sarees.
Political dressing then is a different ball game and not everyone can ace it.
With inputs from agencies