Is Slavery on the Field at the World Cup Finals?

In tomorrow's Spain v. Netherlands World Cup final, there is bound to be a lot of sweating, grunting, and probably some swearing on the field. But in addition to the spirit of soccer this Sunday, there might be the spirit of something else: slavery. That's because slave labor, child labor, and forced labor are used in the production of all sorts of athletic equipment, from soccer balls to uniforms to nets. How do the companies represented at the World Cup final tomorrow measure up?

The Free2Work Campaign rates companies on their labor policies, giving each one a grade from A to F, indicating how well it's preventing slavery and exploitation from tainting its product. They rate everything from consumer electronics to chocolate, including sports gear. And some of the companies who will be featured prominently in the World Cup final have been rated. Here are their roles in the World Cup and how they measure up:

Adidas: A-

The Adidas logo has been seen on all the official World Cup 2010 balls, as well as on the uniforms of the Spanish players. Adidas has enjoyed a prominent role in this World Cup, providing shoes and uniforms for a number of teams. Fortunately, they're also the highest rated soccer ball company in the Free2Work system. Adidas has policies in place to end the use of child labor forced labor and promote collective bargaining within their supply chain. They publicly post their code of conduct and list of suppliers, as well as documenting and disclosing child labor abuses in suppliers and plans on how to address those violations.

Nike: B

Nike jerseys have shown up in a few World Cup matches so far, and on Sunday they'll be donned by the Netherlands. Despite a somewhat rocky (or more accurately, boulder-y) past with child and forced labor issues, Nike's actually doing pretty good, according to Free2Work. They have several corporate programs to monitor labor conditions, and their supply chain includes worker and producer owned cooperatives. They provide a public list of their factories, but don't reveal the audit reports from those factories. They also don't have strong policy regarding underage employees found in factories or suppliers, which given Nike's history in these issues, is surprising.

Puma: C+

If you're going to support your team with gear from the official World Cup store, then it might just be a jersey, shoes, or ball made by Puma. Puma squeaked in above average, by supporting employees’ rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining and ending child labor. They also perform unannounced audits on 5% of their suppliers on an annual basis. However, their code of conduct is not included in their contracts with suppliers, and they have no clear child labor remediation policy.

While these aren't all the companies associated with the World Cup, they are some of the most high profile. Overall, FIFA is doing business with companies whose policies and practices are above average, but could still use some improvement. Still, Sunday's soccer field is going to be so full of energy and heart, I guarantee there will be no room left for slavery.

Photo credit: Shine 2010