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

Early Sample Of UNDEFEATED x adidas Ultra Boost Appears At Sneaker Con

Cali-based UNDFTD is bringing its sublime touch to the adidas Ultra Boost for what’s shaping up to be a massive 2018 release. Featured here in...

By Sneaker News December 22, 2017
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The adidas Ultra Boost LUX By Social Status And Sneakersnstuff Releases Tomorrow

The scrapped sample from Social Status and Sneakersnstuff’s adidas Consortium Sneaker Exchange will be arriving at select retailers before its full-scale release. While a global...

By Ben Felderstein December 14, 2017
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Parley For The Oceans x adidas Ultra BOOST Mid Coming In February 2018

After taking their partnership outside of the BOOST realm with their previous drop, Parley For The Oceans and adidas are back with a new Ultra...

By Ben Felderstein December 8, 2017
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A Ma Maniere And Invincible Close Out adidas Consortium Sneaker Exchange With Ultra Boost & NMD

In 2017, adidas remixed the classic shop/brand collaboration with their Consortium Sneaker Exchange, and year-long campaign that connected the most respected and renowned sneaker boutiques from...

By Sneaker News November 28, 2017
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Ronnie Fieg Collaborates With Nonnative For An adidas Ultra BOOST Mid

Ronnie Fieg introduced the adidas Ultra Boost Mid to the world last year with his wintry collaboration that tied in to the launch of his...

By Sneaker News November 16, 2017
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The Packer x Solebox adidas Consortium Sneaker Exchange Drops Worldwide On Saturday

The Packer Shoes x Solebox x adidas Consortium Sneaker Exchange “Silfra Rift” pack is gearing up for a worldwide release this weekend. The two offerings...

By Ben Felderstein November 10, 2017
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Release Info For The Packer Shoes x Solebox x adidas Consortium Sneaker Exchange

The Packer Shoes x Solebox x adidas Consortium Sneaker Exchange “Silfra Rift”pack is gearing up for an official release on November 4th. The two aquatic...

By Sneaker News October 31, 2017
17031

Packer Shoes And Solebox Create Earth-Shattering adidas Boosts For Consortium Sneaker Exchange

Winding down the year of the adidas Consortium Sneaker Exchange is this transatlantic partnership with two sneaker retail giant’s – Packer Shoes and Solebox. The...

By Sneaker News October 24, 2017
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Where To Buy The adidas Consortium “Run Thru Time” Pack

adidas Consortium Sneaker Exchange continues to bring us some of the most interesting collaborative efforts in the sneaker game today, and this time around the...

By Patrick Johnson July 18, 2017
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