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

Pusha T x adidas Originals EQT Guidance ’93 – Release Reminder

The Pusha T x adidas Originals EQT Guidance ’93 is headed to select stores tomorrow, December 23rd, 2014. We recently sat down with King Push...

By Patrick Johnson December 22, 2014
20757

The Hundreds x adidas Stan Smith Vulc – Release Date

California’s The Hundreds gets some more daps for this awesome collaboration. After remixing the Pump on their Reebok team-up earlier this year, they impress once...

By John Kim December 17, 2014
4047

Nosetalgia for the EQT: Pusha T Talks His First Ever adidas Collaboration

Pusha T’s seen it all within the rap industry – from a legendarily hot start with the Pharrell cosigned Lord Willin‘ as a member of...

By Patrick Johnson December 16, 2014
6523

Maharishi x UNDFTD x adidas Originals Consortium Pack – Available

After long wait and a wealth of previews, the winter collaborative release between London-based fashion label Maharishi, Los Angeles streetwear giants UNDFTD, and adidas Originals...

By Darren Griffin December 13, 2014
2557

King Push x adidas Originals EQT Guidance ’93 – Release Date

Pusha T made it rather difficult to talk about his coming adidas Originals collaboration without referencing his track record of… well, if you’ve listened to...

By Patrick Johnson December 11, 2014
17246

Pusha T x adidas Originals EQT Guidance ’93 – Preview

Pusha T has been everywhere lately. Earlier today his Play Cloths label announced a new collaboration with the Saucony Grid 9000, and now The Clipse...

By Patrick Johnson December 5, 2014
5488

Another Look at the Solebox x adidas Guidance ’93

Following a closer look at the HAL x adidas EQT Guidance ’93 earlier this week, we now draw our attention to another component of this...

By Darren Griffin December 5, 2014
2772

The Hundreds x adidas Stan Smith Vulc

Bobby, Ben Hundreds, and co. didn’t skip out on the mustaches when they had their faces inked on the tongue of the upcoming The Hundreds...

By Patrick Johnson December 4, 2014
5779

Another Look at the HAL x adidas EQT Guidance ’93

adidas archival releases will long be synonymous with this year in sneakers, and the Equipment series will rank among the most noteworthy. Holding firm throughout...

By Darren Griffin December 3, 2014
6187