Nike drops Manny Pacquiao after boxer’s ‘abhorrent’ anti-gay remarks

Nike has severed its relationship with Manny Pacquiao over his homophobic comments made in a Filipino television interview.

Nike has severed its relationship with Manny Pacquiao over his homophobic comments made in a Filipino television interview, the company announced Wednesday.

Pacquiao, who is running for re-election to the Filipino senate, said that people in same-sex relationships were “worse than animals.”

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“It’s just common sense,” Pacquiao continued. “Have you seen any animal having male-to-male or female-to-female relations?”

In a press release, Nike called Pacquiao’s comments “abhorrent.”

“Nike strongly opposed discrimination of any kind and has a long history of supporting and standing up for the rights of the LGBT community,” the company added. 

• Jason Collins calls Manny Pacquiao a bigot

TMZ reported earlier Wednesday the Nike was expected to drop Pacquiao and had already removed Pacquiao-related apparel from its online store.

- Dan Gartland