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
Japan’s Uptown Deluxe Covers The adidas Nite Jogger In Cheetah Prints
Yet to see its next collaboration with Beyoncé’s IVY PARK and Tyler “Ninja” Blevins, the adidas Nite Jogger has recently launched in an exotic arrangement...
Ninja Accents The adidas Superstar With His Signature Color
Tyler Blevins — better known by his online alias Ninja — has pioneered online streaming as the arguable face of Fortnite. The “Time In” he’s...
atmos Teases Upcoming adidas ZX ALKYNE Collaboration
For the better part of the last few months, atmos has stayed busy by way of collaborations, teaming up with names like Sean Wotherspoon to...
Luke Skywalker’s adidas Stan Smith Comes With Swappable Lace Dubrae
Although the Star Wars saga rolled its last credits this past December, the legacy of the galaxy far, far, away will live on for generations...
adidas Originals And Alife® Drop Another Nizza Hi Collaboration On July 17th
After successfully launching their first adidas Nizza Hi in May 2019, New York institution Alife® and The Three Stripes have a duo of the ’70s...
END And adidas Re-issue The Paris In Extremely Limited Quantity
The adidas archive is undoubtedly vast, and though replete of icons, the label seems almost hesitant to release any of the once beloved models on...
atmos Teases An adidas Superstar “Reflective Snake” Collaboration
The adidas Superstar, while already cared for by Pharrell, Jonah Hill, and the like, has received quite the celebration ever since it hit 50-years-old. And...
Jonah Hill’s adidas Superstar Collaboration Releases July 11th
Though newly added to the adidas family, Jonah Hill started on a good foot as he expanded his directorial portfolio with a star-studded Superstar campaign....
KICKS LAB Employs Premium Navy Suede On Their adidas Campus Collaboration
adidas, as exhibited by the NMD and adjacent city runners, has always been enamored with Japanese culture, and as such, the brand consistently enlists help...