Adidas
Adolf Dassler began making sports shoes in his mother's scullery or laundry room in Herzogenaurach, Germany after returning from World War I. In July 1924, his older brother Rudolf joined the business under the name Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik. The electricity supply in Herzogenaurach was unreliable, so the brothers sometimes had to use pedal power from a stationary bicycle to run their equipment. Dassler assisted in the development of spiked running shoes for multiple athletic events by transitioning from heavy metal spikes to utilising canvas and rubber. He persuaded U.S. sprinter Jesse Owens to use his handmade spikes at the 1936 Summer Olympics. Following Owens' four gold medals, the name and reputation of Dassler shoes became known to the world's sportsmen and their trainers. Business was successful and the Dasslers were selling 200,000 pairs of shoes every year before World War II.
Both Dassler brothers joined the Nazi Party in May 1933 and became members of the National Socialist Motor Corps. Adolf took the rank of Sportwart in the Hitler Youth from 1935 until the end of the war. During the war, the company ran the last sport shoe factory in Germany and predominantly supplied the Wehrmacht with shoes. In 1943, their shoe production was forced to cease operations and the company's facilities and workforce were used to manufacture anti-tank weapons. From 1942 to 1945, at least nine forced labourers worked at both sites of the company. The Dassler factory was nearly destroyed in 1945 by US forces but was spared when Adolf Dassler's wife convinced American soldiers that the company only manufactured sports shoes. American occupying forces subsequently became major buyers of the Dassler brothers' shoes.
The brothers split up in 1947 after relations between them had broken down. Adolf formed a company registered as Adidas AG on the 18th of August 1949, while Rudolf established a new firm called Ruda which later rebranded Puma. Urban myths have popularised two false backronyms for the name Adidas: All Day I Dream About Sports and All Day I Dream About Sex. Adidas and Puma SE entered into a fierce and bitter business rivalry after the split. The town of Herzogenaurach was divided on the issue, leading to the nickname the town of bent necks. Even the town's two football clubs were divided: ASV Herzogenaurach club was supported by Adidas, while 1 FC Herzogenaurach endorsed Rudolf's footwear. When handymen were called to Rudolf's home, they would deliberately wear Adidas shoes. Rudolf would tell them to go to the basement and pick out a pair of free Pumas. The two brothers never reconciled and although they are now buried in the same cemetery, they are spaced as far apart as possible.
In 1952, following the 1952 Summer Olympics, Adidas acquired its signature three-stripe logo from the Finnish athletic footwear brand Karhu Sports. The purchase price included two bottles of whiskey and the equivalent of €1,600. This branding became so successful that Dassler described Adidas as The three stripes company. The Trefoil logo was designed in 1971 and launched in 1972, just in time for the 1972 Summer Olympics held in Munich. This logo lasted until 1997 when the company introduced the three bars logo initially used on the Equipment range of products.
The most successful shoe from Adidas is the Samba due to its retro design and its versatility. Adidas also manufactures slide-style sandals including Adilette which was originally developed in 1963. Adidas claims that a group of athletes approached Adi Dassler requesting a shoe be made for the locker room. To this day, the resulting sandals are a best-seller. Since the original navy blue and white Adilette sandals were created nearly fifty years ago, more varieties have been created in different colours. Most recently, Adidas has introduced a colour scheme that goes along with its Predator and adizero line dubbed warning orange and purple. Usually, the three stripes appear in the contrasting colour on the strap of the classic models.
After a period of trouble following the death of Adolf Dassler's son Horst Dassler in 1987, the company was bought in 1990 by French industrialist Bernard Tapie for ₹1.6 billion. Tapie decided to move production offshore to Asia and hired Madonna for promotion. He sent a shoe sales representative from Christchurch, New Zealand to Germany and met Adolf Dassler's descendants Amelia Randall Dassler and Bella Beck Dassler. In 1992, unable to pay the loan interest, Tapie mandated the Crédit Lyonnais bank to sell Adidas. The bank converted the outstanding debt owed into equity in Adidas which was unusual per the prevalent French banking practice.
Robert Louis-Dreyfus became the new CEO of the company in 1994. He was also the president of Olympique de Marseille, a team Tapie had owned until 1993. In 1994, Tapie filed for personal bankruptcy and served six months of an 18-month prison sentence in La Santé prison in Paris in 1997. In February 2000, Crédit Lyonnais sold Adidas to Louis-Dreyfus for 4.485 billion francs rather than 2.85 billion francs. As CEO of Adidas, Louis-Dreyfus quadrupled revenue to €5.84 billion from 1993 through 2000. In 2000, he announced he would resign the following year due to illness. In 1997, Adidas AG acquired the Salomon Group who specialized in ski wear and its official corporate name was changed to Adidas-Salomon AG.
In August 2005, Adidas declared its intention to buy Reebok for $3.8 billion. This takeover was completed with a partnership in January 2006 and meant that the company had business sales closer to those of Nike in North America. The acquisition of Reebok also allowed Adidas to compete with Nike worldwide as the number two athletic shoemaker in the world. In 2005, Adidas introduced the Adidas 1, the first ever production shoe to use a microprocessor. It features a microprocessor capable of performing 5 million calculations per second that automatically adjusts the shoe's level of cushioning to suit its environment.
The shoe requires a small user-replaceable battery that lasts for approximately 100 hours of running. On the 25th of November 2005, Adidas released a new version of the Adidas 1 with an increased range of cushioning allowing the shoe to become softer or firmer and a new motor with 153 percent more torque. In April 2006, Adidas announced an 11-year deal to become the official NBA clothing provider worth over $400 million. This deal took over the previous Reebok deal that had been put in place in 2001 for 10 years. In August 2015, Adidas acquired fitness technology firm Runtastic for approximately $240 million.
Adidas makes referee kits that are used in international competitions and by many countries and leagues in the world. The company has been an innovator in the area of footwear for the sport with notable examples including the 1979 release of the Copa Mundial moulded boot used for matches on firm dry pitches. It holds the accolade of being the best selling boot of all time. Since 1970, FIFA has commissioned specially designed footballs for use in its own World Cup tournaments. The Adidas Telstar was the first ball commissioned for the World Cup in 1970.
The balls supplied for the 2006 World Cup, the Teamgeist, were particularly noteworthy for their ability to travel further than previous types when struck leading to longer range goals. Goalkeepers were generally believed to be less comfortable with the design of the ball claiming it was prone to moving significantly and unpredictably in flight. In 2010, Adidas introduced the Jabulani which was designed and developed by Loughborough University in conjunction with Bayern München. The Adidas Brazuca for the 2014 World Cup was the first World Cup ball named by fans. In 2022, for the 14th time in a row, Adidas created the 2022 World Cup ball Al Rihla.
Adidas has been criticized for operating sweatshops particularly in Indonesia. Between 2006 and 2007, Adidas rejected many of its suppliers that supported unions in favour of subcontractors with worse labour rights records. At the Panarub factory in Java, 33 workers were fired after striking for better pay in 2005. PT Kizone is another Indonesian factory where Adidas has been criticized over the treatment of workers. They produced products for Adidas as well as Nike and the Dallas Cowboys until they closed in January 2011. 2,686 workers who were laid off are owed $3 million in severance pay and benefits.
On the 16th of July 2012, War on Want organised activists in London to replace Adidas price tags in sports stores with 34p ones referencing the low hourly wage rate paid to the Indonesian workers who make Adidas goods. The campaign group Labour Behind the Label claimed that the basic pay of Indonesian Adidas workers was only £10 a week. In April 2014, one of the biggest strikes on mainland China took place at the Yue Yuen Industrial Holdings Dongguan shoe factory producing amongst others for Adidas. On the 14th of June 2012, Adidas posted on their Facebook page a picture of a pair of Jeremy Scott-designed shoes containing shackles which caused controversy.
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Common questions
When did Adolf Dassler start making sports shoes in Herzogenaurach?
Adolf Dassler began making sports shoes after returning from World War I. He started the business in his mother's scullery or laundry room in Herzogenaurach, Germany.
What happened to the Dassler brothers company during World War II?
The company ran the last sport shoe factory in Germany and supplied the Wehrmacht with shoes until 1943 when production ceased. From 1942 to 1945, at least nine forced labourers worked at both sites of the company before facilities were used to manufacture anti-tank weapons.
How was the Adidas name created and what are false backronyms associated with it?
Adolf formed a company registered as Adidas AG on the 18th of August 1949 after splitting from his brother Rudolf. Urban myths have popularised two false backronyms for the name Adidas: All Day I Dream About Sports and All Day I Dream About Sex.
Who designed the Trefoil logo for Adidas and when was it launched?
The Trefoil logo was designed in 1971 and launched in 1972 just in time for the 1972 Summer Olympics held in Munich. This logo lasted until 1997 when the company introduced the three bars logo initially used on the Equipment range of products.
When did Adidas acquire Reebok and how much did the deal cost?
In August 2005, Adidas declared its intention to buy Reebok for $3.8 billion. This takeover was completed with a partnership in January 2006 and meant that the company had business sales closer to those of Nike in North America.