Why is Adidas cutting technology jobs in India while sales are growing 14%?

Adidas AG has begun cutting jobs within its technology organisation in India as the German sportswear group attempts to simplify operations and strengthen selected technical capabilities despite reporting record quarterly sales and raising its 2026 revenue outlook. The company confirmed on September 16 that roles had been eliminated but declined to disclose an exact headcount, saying only that the impact represented less than 20% of its India Technology organisation. The reductions are therefore substantial enough to reshape parts of the operation without supporting some of the much larger layoff estimates circulating publicly.

Reports originating from people familiar with the Gurugram process have suggested that 350 or more employees may have been affected, including software engineers, data scientists and data engineers, but that number has not been independently verified and Adidas AG has not confirmed it. The company’s own statement sets a materially different boundary by saying fewer than 20% of employees in the India Technology organisation are affected, which makes the unverified 350-person estimate unsuitable as a confirmed layoff figure. Some employees were reportedly informed during a September 15 town hall, while others may remain through December to complete handovers or explore internal opportunities, although Adidas AG has not publicly provided a detailed timetable by individual role.

The restructuring is notable because India remains strategically important to Adidas AG’s digital operations rather than being abandoned as a technology location. The company said its technology hub continues to play a critical role in growth, innovation and digital transformation, while its Gurugram location combines local marketing functions with one of Adidas AG’s Global Engineering Tech Hubs. The company’s careers site lists approximately 350 employees at the Gurugram location, while its newer Chennai Global Business Services operation lists roughly 296 employees and is focused heavily on finance, procurement, human resources services, automation and continuous improvement.

Why is Adidas AG cutting technology jobs when sales are at record levels?

The timing creates an obvious question because Adidas AG is not restructuring against a backdrop of collapsing sales. Second-quarter 2026 revenue increased 14% on a currency-neutral basis and 13% in reported euros to €6.74 billion, the highest quarterly sales figure in the company’s history. Direct-to-consumer revenue increased 25%, the Performance business grew 39%, gross margin improved to 52.5% and operating profit rose 5% to €574 million despite significantly higher spending on World Cup marketing.

First-half performance was similarly strong, with revenue reaching approximately €13.3 billion and operating profit climbing 11% to €1.28 billion. Net income from continuing operations increased 9% to €882 million, while Adidas AG raised its full-year sales outlook and now expects currency-neutral revenue to increase between 9% and 10%. The company continues to forecast operating profit of around €2.3 billion, meaning the India technology restructuring is better viewed as an operating-model decision than an emergency response to weak financial results.

That distinction increasingly matters when analysing corporate layoffs because profitable companies are becoming more willing to remove jobs where management believes structures have become inefficient or capabilities no longer match future requirements. Adidas AG said the India changes are intended to simplify parts of the organisation, strengthen critical capabilities and position the company for long-term success in a rapidly changing business and technology environment. In practical terms, that suggests the company is reassessing which technology activities need internal scale, where work should be located and which technical skills remain strategically differentiated as digital tools become more mature.

Has Adidas AG already been reducing its global technology workforce?

The company’s latest annual workforce disclosures show that technology employment had already been moving lower before the September India action. Adidas AG reported an average of 4,546 information technology employees during 2025, down from 4,924 in 2024, representing a reduction of roughly 7.7%. Research and development employment also declined modestly to 973 from 1,047, while several customer-facing areas expanded as the company continued rebuilding brand momentum and retail growth.

The wider workforce moved in the opposite direction because Adidas AG’s overall average employee count increased from 59,137 in 2024 to 61,952 in 2025. Own-retail employment rose strongly to 35,467 from 32,676, while logistics and marketing headcount also increased, demonstrating that the company was not pursuing a broad-based reduction across every function. Year-end global employment stood at 64,938 people, according to Adidas AG’s investor information, reinforcing the idea that resources are being reallocated between functions rather than the company simply shrinking overall.

This functional divergence is particularly interesting because digital transformation often begins with rapid hiring before eventually moving into a consolidation phase. Companies initially build engineering, e-commerce, data and digital-platform teams to create new capabilities, but once platforms mature, management may decide that some development work can be standardised, automated or concentrated in fewer specialist teams. The India restructuring may therefore represent a transition from building digital scale toward improving the productivity of technology operations, although Adidas AG has not publicly attributed the job cuts specifically to artificial intelligence or automation.

Why does India still matter to Adidas AG’s digital strategy after the layoffs?

Adidas AG’s own description of its Gurugram engineering hub makes clear that India remains connected to global digital growth. The company says its Indian engineering operations help support e-commerce and digital consumer experiences and highlights the country’s access to technology talent and rapid digitalisation as reasons for maintaining a major presence there. Gurugram also hosts local marketing teams, meaning the location connects global technical capabilities with one of the company’s increasingly important consumer markets.

Chennai adds another dimension to the India footprint because the Global Business Services centre focuses on finance, procurement, human resources services, automation, performance reporting and continuous improvement. Adidas AG portrays that operation as a location where process efficiency and innovation are combined rather than simply a low-cost back-office centre, and its careers site lists approximately 296 employees there. The difference between the Gurugram engineering hub and the Chennai business-services centre is important because the confirmed September action specifically concerns the India Technology organisation, making it inappropriate to treat every Adidas AG employee at both sites as part of the layoff pool.

The company has explicitly said that India remains strategically important and that the technology hub will continue supporting digital transformation. That wording suggests Adidas AG is attempting to preserve selected technical capabilities while removing duplication or roles that no longer fit the operating model. The next meaningful indicator will be which technology positions the company continues recruiting for after the restructuring, because hiring patterns will show whether India is becoming smaller overall or simply more specialised.

Is artificial intelligence driving the Adidas India technology layoffs?

There is currently no solid basis for presenting the restructuring as an artificial intelligence replacement programme. Adidas AG referred more broadly to changing business and technology requirements, simplification and strengthening critical capabilities, without saying that specific employees were replaced by AI systems. The company’s 2025 reporting emphasised digital learning, reskilling and continued investment in employee development, indicating that technology transformation is occurring alongside efforts to improve workforce capabilities rather than through one single automation programme.

Artificial intelligence nevertheless forms part of the broader environment in which technology organisations are being reassessed. Software development, data analysis, testing, documentation and internal support can increasingly be accelerated by generative AI and automation, potentially changing how many people are required for particular projects even when companies continue investing heavily in technology. For Adidas AG, the more defensible conclusion is that technology productivity is becoming more important while management is deciding which capabilities should remain strategically differentiated and which processes can be simplified.

That distinction is important for employees because technology-sector workforce reductions increasingly occur inside companies whose digital ambitions remain intact. A company can reduce engineering or data roles while simultaneously increasing spending on platforms, automation, cybersecurity or selected specialist talent. Adidas AG’s own statement that it intends to strengthen critical capabilities suggests that some areas of technology could continue receiving investment even as other roles disappear.

How does the restructuring fit Bjørn Gulden’s wider Adidas AG strategy?

Chief Executive Officer Bjørn Gulden has spent the past several years rebuilding Adidas AG around faster product decisions, stronger retailer relationships, more local market autonomy and tighter operational discipline. The 2026 financial results show substantial progress, with double-digit sales growth across key product areas and direct-to-consumer channels while the company continues investing heavily in marketing to maintain brand momentum. Adidas AG spent €212 million more on marketing during the second quarter than a year earlier, particularly around FIFA World Cup campaigns and activations, yet still delivered higher operating profit.

That strategy places significant pressure on support functions to demonstrate that their costs contribute directly to consumer growth or operating efficiency. Technology remains essential because e-commerce, product availability, consumer data, retail systems and digital experiences all depend on reliable engineering infrastructure, but management may increasingly favour smaller teams that can move quickly rather than larger organisations with multiple layers. The India restructuring is therefore consistent with Gulden’s broader preference for organisational speed, although Adidas AG has not specifically characterised the layoffs as part of a named global restructuring programme.

The company is also entering a finance leadership transition that could reinforce cost discipline. Birgit Kretschmer joined the Adidas AG Executive Board on September 1 and will succeed Harm Ohlmeyer as chief financial officer at the end of 2026 after spending six years as CFO of C&A Europe and previously holding multiple senior finance positions during a 25-year career at Adidas AG. Gulden specifically highlighted her knowledge of cost discipline when announcing the appointment, making operating efficiency likely to remain prominent as the company enters 2027.

Why does the India technology restructuring matter even if the final number is below 20%?

Technology jobs generally sit at the centre of the digital transformation strategies companies have promoted for years, making cuts in these teams especially significant even when they affect a relatively small proportion of a multinational workforce. Adidas AG’s restructuring suggests that digital organisations themselves are no longer exempt from the productivity scrutiny traditionally applied to manufacturing, retail operations or administrative functions. For Indian technology professionals, the action also illustrates how captive global engineering centres can be strategically important while still facing periodic redesign as multinational companies adjust their operating models.

The unresolved discrepancy around the size of the layoffs makes careful reporting particularly important. Unverified reports have put the number at 350 or more in Gurugram, but Adidas AG has not confirmed that estimate and has instead said the impact is below 20% of its India Technology organisation. Until the company publishes an exact figure or regulatory disclosure, the responsible interpretation is that the India technology operation has undergone a meaningful but not precisely quantified reduction.

Employees will also be watching internal redeployment because some affected workers have reportedly been given time to seek other positions inside Adidas AG before their planned departures. If a meaningful number move into other technology, digital or business functions, the net employment impact could end up smaller than the number of roles initially identified for removal. Conversely, extensive transfer of work to other Adidas AG technology centres would indicate that the restructuring is changing the geographic distribution of digital work rather than simply eliminating activities altogether.

How are Adidas AG shares performing as the company cuts technology roles?

Adidas AG shares closed at approximately €144.65 on Xetra on September 16, up about 1.9% for the session, meaning the market did not register an obvious negative reaction to the India technology restructuring on the day it became public. The stock nevertheless remained well below its 52-week high of approximately €196.40, reflecting investor caution despite strong revenue growth and improved operating performance. The share price had also fallen sharply after the July second-quarter results as investors focused on profit expectations and elevated marketing expenditure despite record sales.

The sentiment picture is therefore more nuanced than the layoff announcement alone. Adidas AG is generating record revenue and expects operating profit of around €2.3 billion in 2026, but investors are assessing how much spending will be required to preserve momentum and whether stronger sales can produce enough incremental margin expansion. Technology efficiency can contribute to that equation, but a relatively limited India restructuring is unlikely by itself to determine the investment case.

The more important question is whether management can keep operating overhead growing more slowly than sales while continuing to fund marketing, product development and direct-to-consumer expansion. Second-quarter operating overhead expenses fell to 29.9% of sales from 30.6% a year earlier, providing evidence that revenue growth is already creating some leverage. Workforce decisions in technology and other corporate functions could become another mechanism for protecting that improvement as Adidas AG moves beyond its turnaround phase.

What should Adidas AG employees and investors watch next?

The first issue is whether Adidas AG provides a clearer final headcount for the India restructuring after transition periods and internal job searches are completed. The company’s less-than-20% statement establishes a ceiling relative to the India Technology organisation, but it does not reveal exactly how many employees will ultimately leave or how many positions may be filled internally. Greater clarity would also resolve the gap between the company’s statement and much higher estimates that have circulated in Indian media.

The second issue is the future shape of Adidas AG’s global technology workforce. Information technology employment had already fallen from 4,924 average employees in 2024 to 4,546 in 2025 even while the company’s total workforce expanded, indicating that September’s action did not begin from a static technology organisation. Continued reductions would suggest a longer structural shift, while renewed hiring in areas such as artificial intelligence, consumer platforms, cybersecurity or advanced data engineering would point toward a more selective reallocation of technical talent.

For Adidas AG, the strategic contradiction is only apparent. The company can believe deeply in digital transformation while concluding that its technology organisation should operate with fewer people or a different mix of skills, particularly after years of investment in e-commerce and engineering capability. With sales at record levels and India still described as strategically important, the September layoffs look less like a retreat from technology than an attempt to decide which technology work creates the most value in the next phase of growth.

That makes this workforce action worth watching beyond the final number of employees affected. Adidas AG has moved from a period focused heavily on brand recovery into one where management must show that record sales translate into sustainable margins, and every support function is likely to face closer scrutiny as that transition continues. The India Technology organisation is now one of the first visible examples of what that efficiency phase can mean for employees even when the company around them is growing rapidly.