A World Cup Worker Says FIFA Handed Her Tape and Told Her to Cover Her Nike Logo Because ‘That’s Not Adidas’ — and She’s Not the Only One

A TikTok posted by a stadium worker @nvmjvlissa at the 2026 FIFA World Cup shows her narrating how she was told to cover the Nike logo on her shoes with tape.

"I'm working at the World Cup at the Levi, oh sorry, at the San Francisco Bay Area Stadium," she said at the start of the clip. Her on-camera correction reflected one of FIFA's sponsorship rules: Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, was temporarily renamed 'San Francisco Bay Area Stadium' for the tournament.

The TikToker said she wore her Nike shoes to work by accident. Staff handed her tape and told her to cover the logo. "Bro, tell me why, this is what the f--- they made me do," she said in the video. "They handed me tape and they were like, you need to cover that up. That's not Adidas. Bro, it's not that serious."

As of publication, the video had drawn nearly 1 million likes and several thousand replies. One comment on @nvmjvlissa's video pointed to two other similar cases. "FIFA pulled up on Gillette and Levi's too," the commenter wrote, referring to other brands the organization had reportedly required to cover or alter their branding. "FIFA forced them to cover logos: Gillette covered it with 'shaving cream' and Levi's turned the tarp into its new logo."

One other commenter held up FIFA's commercial reasoning. "Yes they wouldn't allow you to show the logo because they didn't pay for sponsorship," the commenter wrote.

FIFA maintains strict sponsorship rules requiring all World Cup stadiums to be free of any branding or references to companies that are not official FIFA sponsors, a standard the organization says exists to "protect its brands and the exclusive rights of its sponsors."

Others criticized FIFA for how its sponsorship works. "FIFA must be one of the most corrupt thing [sic] that has ever touched earth," one commenter wrote.

Another commenter wrote, "FIFA and sponsors fighting again," the commenter wrote. "The worker is stuck in the middle. But should FIFA control what shoes workers wear?"

FIFA had not commented on the video as of publication.

The Daily Dot was unable to independently verify all details described in the video. The details above reflect the account as shared on TikTok by @nvmjvlissa and information from FIFA's official website. The worker's employer and specific role at the venue have not been confirmed.