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 SL 72 x Star Wars Han Solo | Available

Han Solo is among the most beloved heroes in cinema history and it’s about time he got his due in the ongoing adidas Originals x...

By Aaron Hope August 31, 2010
2908

James Bond for David Beckham x adidas Doley

The past couple of weeks has seen several very good efforts from James Bond and David Beckham for Becks’ adidas Originals ObyO capsule.  As with...

By Aaron Hope August 27, 2010
89

Star Wars x adidas Originals Top Ten Lo – C3PO x R2D2

Collaborations typically pair the creatively inclined with a famous sneaker silhouette, and we’ve even seen triple and quadruple teamups, but the latest Star Wars x...

By Aaron Hope August 27, 2010
835

Star Wars x adidas Originals Conductor Hi – Death Star

The Star Wars invasion of adidas Originals has led to some sick shoes and the concepts are truly endless due to the vast array of...

By John Kim August 24, 2010
274

Jeremy Scott x adidas Originals – New Releases @ Packer Shoes

For those who live by the “Go Big or Go Home” motto, the Jeremy Scott x adidas Originals Collection might be a perfect fit. Known...

By John Kim August 20, 2010
905

David Beckham x adidas Originals Gazelle Vintage Mid

Even though it’s not very much like the original from which it takes its name, the adidas Gazelle Mid from David Beckham and James Bond...

By Aaron Hope August 18, 2010
1107

adidas Originals by Originals x Jeremy Scott Penguin

Jeremy Scott continues to carve out a very distinct niche within the lifestyle footwear market, this time co-opting a dress shoe theme quite differently than...

By Aaron Hope August 17, 2010
782

Jeremy Scott x adidas JS Wings 2.0 – White – Black

The marbled white pair of Jeremy Scott x adidas JS Wings 2.0s was true to the mythical foundations of its inspiration, but what about the...

By Aaron Hope August 13, 2010
12912

Jeremy Scott x adidas Originals – JS License Plate

Jeremy Scott has done a bunch of interesting things with big additions to his adidas Originals collaborations and the latest JS ObyO release sticks with...

By Aaron Hope August 11, 2010
1342