adidas

adidas, also known as The Three Stripes Brand, is a German sportswear company founded in 1949 by Adolf “Adi” Dassler. With roots in track and football, it has become a global player within the sneaker industry over the past 70 years.

With influence spanning football, basketball, tennis, skateboarding, fencing, and other sports, the company’s first performance-related breakthrough occurred in 1936 within the running space. Jesse Owens famously wore Dassler’s revolutionary canvas and rubber spiked running shoe in the Summer Olympics held in Germany that year. And while Owens’ record-breaking performance at the global competition brought adidas attention, the brand hadn’t yet found its identity; the spikes didn’t feature the brand’s now-signature 3-Stripes logo. (adidas acquired this branding from Finland’s Karhu in 1952.)

The German company achieved similar attention in subsequent decades within both the basketball and tennis spaces thanks to the Superstar (1969) and Stan Smith (1973), respectively. Other made-for-sports models like the adidas Top Ten (1979) and adidas Forum (1984) similarly became lifestyle staples in New York, Boston, Chicago, and other cities. adidas’ Superstar became the unofficial shoe of hip-hop in the 1980s largely due to RUN DMC’s superstardom. (The shell-toe was the best-selling sneaker in North America in 2016.) While less popular stateside, running silhouettes like the SL 72 (1972) and ZX 500 (1984) boast devoted fans of trainers across Europe and Asia. These silhouettes have experienced resurgences throughout the decades, and are now offered under the adidas Originals banner.

Recent years have seen 3-Stripes-branded sneakers soar in popularity, in large part because of the Kanye West led Yeezy sub-label and UltraBOOST, as well as BOOST and adidas 4D cushioning. The German company has also pioneered high-fashion collaborations, hosting Yohji Yamamoto’s Y-3 imprint since 2003. In 2020, classic silhouettes were reimagined by Prada and Craig Green. Elsewhere, partnerships with Beyoncé’s IVY PARK, Tyler “Ninja” Blevins, Jonah Hill, Pharrell and others ensured adidas remained the global behemoth it has been for decades.

Throughout 2024, the Three Stripes will surely continue its run as a proponent of the mix between sportswear and fashion. On this end, the brand signed FEAR OF GOD‘s Jerry Lorenzo to drive the creative and business strategy of its basketball category, culminating in the release of the Fear of God Athletics adidas Basketball 1, a shoe set for plenty of releases as the year draws on. It’s also been a banner year for adidas Basketball in terms of their signature athletes, with the German giant releasing Anthony Edwards’ AE1 & James Harden Vol. 8, while continuing a push for the Trae Young 3 and D.O.N. Issue #5.

Scroll below for the latest release dates and information on what adidas has in store for this year.

adidas

adidas Originals ZX Flux NPS “Neoprene Graphic” Collection

Did the adidas Originals ZX Flux take a back seat to the brand new Tubular? adidas Originals wants you to know that they’re still working...

By Patrick Johnson December 31, 2014
10133

adidas Hoops “Broadway Express” Collection

All aboard the Broadway Express. adidas Hoops looks to the New York City public transit for inspiration with their latest Broadway Express Collection for January...

By Patrick Johnson December 30, 2014
2024

adidas Originals Superstar Lookbook for January 2015

adidas Originals had quite the year in 2014. They brought back a number of archival models, and at the forefront was the adidas Stan Smith....

By Patrick Johnson December 18, 2014
6590

adidas TMAC 1 “SVSM” PE – Release Date

The adidas TMAC 1 “St Vincent St Mary” PE will release this Saturday, December 6th, 2014. LeBron may be the leader of Nike’s big three...

By Patrick Johnson December 4, 2014
4604

A Complete Buyer’s Guide for Holiday 2014 Sneakers

We survived Black Friday, which means that the holiday season is in full effect. But with all of the heat set to warm up this...

By Patrick Johnson December 1, 2014
75056

Derrick Rose Gets His Own adidas Lifestyle Shoe

Derrick Rose‘s signature adidas line is going lifestyle with the brand new adidas D Rose Lakeshore Boost. The three stripe’s infatuation with the bouncy cushioning...

By Patrick Johnson November 25, 2014
5963

Highs And Lows/Solebox x adidas Originals Consortium EQT Guidance ’93 Release Dates

The High and Lows/Solebox x adidas Originals Consortium EQT Guidance ’93 collaborative releases drop on December 6th. Maybe not as highly utilized as its EQT Running...

By staff November 24, 2014
8552

Pharrell x adidas Originals Stan Smith “Polka Dot” Collection

Pharrell Williams is back with a brand new collaborative effort atop the adidas Originals Stan Smith, this time showcasing his unique inclination for exciting aesthetics...

By Patrick Johnson November 21, 2014
21351

adidas Consortium Tubular

With all of the buzz behind adidas Originals latest running silhouette turned lifestyle aesthetic in the adidas Tubular, it wasn’t too far fetched to expect...

By Patrick Johnson November 20, 2014
19598