Ukrainian fashion brand GUNIA Project faced public criticism after featuring multiple-time MMA world champion Georgy Gudz in a new Independence Day advertising campaign.
According to Telegram channel Obozrevatel.ua, the label suffered reputational damage over the athlete's musical preferences. Online users expressed outrage after the photos were published, noting that Gudz continued creating content in Russian after 2022.
The fighter also openly declares a preference for Russian musicians. Gudz is a fan of the artist Macan and previously posted a photograph alongside Russian rapper Guf.
Public anger forced GUNIA Project to remove Gudz from the project. In a published statement, the brand acknowledged its mistake and apologized for failing to thoroughly review the athlete's public activities.
Ekonika Campaign Backlash
The controversy follows a similar uproar over an advertising campaign by Russian label Ekonika that featured British model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. Foreign users left angry comments on the model's social media profiles, prompting her to close the comments section.
Advertising images featuring the supermodel subsequently disappeared from Ekonika's Instagram account, which is owned by Meta. Brand representatives stated that territorial restrictions on the platform caused the photos to disappear.
