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.
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adidas
Sean Wotherspoon Gives The All-New adidas Orketro A Colorful Makeover
Although countless netizens have taken to social media to express the belief that Yeezy is currently carrying the brand, adidas has recently previewed new and...
adidas Unveils The Foam-Based adiFOM Q
We’ve reached a unique era in sneakers, where slides and clogs are at the peak of what’s considered “fashion” in footwear. adidas just so happens...
Adilette, From Bathroom Shoes To Summer 2022’s Most Talked About Slide
In sneaker culture, we frequently and vocally celebrate icons like the Stan Smith and Air Jordan 1, often retelling their history ad nauseam. Slides, however,...
A “Panda” Makeover Is Now Available On The adidas Supernova Cushion 7
As adidas continues to push the boundaries within sports, the German outfitter keeps revisiting its past. The latest example?: A new colorway of the adidas...
adidas’ 2000s-Inspired ADI2000 Arrives In A Clean “Cloud White” Colorway
Despite drawing its aesthetics from the early 2000s, the adidas ADI2000 comfortably fits in amongst the rest of the Three Stripes’ contemporary designs. And recently,...
Pusha T Debuts Pharrell’s Next adidas NMD S1 HU RYAT Colorway
The details of Pusha T’s contract renegotiation with adidas aren’t known, but one thing’s certain: the “Robb Report of the Snow” always supports Pharrell Williams....
Noah Turns To Canvas For Its adidas Adria Collaboration
New York City’s Noah and adidas Originals have been collaborating for only two years, but that’ve quickly garnered a cult-like following in that span of...
INVINCIBLE And NEIGHBORHOOD Repaint Their adidas Campus In White
Back in December of 2021, INVINCIBLE pre-gamed their 15th Anniversary with both NEIGHBORHOOD and adidas, borrowing the two’s expertise for a special rendition of the...
First Look At The adidas Yeezy Knit Runner “Faded Azure”
Although the artist formerly known as Kanye West has singlehandedly made form-fitting knits sneakers the trendiest thing on the planet for nearly half a decade,...