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
Where To Buy The adidas Yeezy Boost 700 “Analog”
The month of Yeezy releases moves forward as adidas and adidas retailer partners continue to drop Yeezy footwear day by day. It appears that some...
The Winged Dragon Of Ra Gets Its Own adidas Superstar Collaboration
In late September 2022, adidas announced a partnership with none other than Yu-Gi-Oh!, the beloved franchise created by Kazuki Takahashi. Over its first two releases,...
adidas Transforms The Stan Smith Into A Chunky, Platform Mule
Though among one of the most iconic sneakers of all-time, the Stan Smith is not at all exempt from experimentation. And though previously reluctant to...
The adidas UltraBOOST 1.0 “Fade Cage” Pack Injects Hits Of Bold Gold And Preloved Blue
Celebrating its 10th anniversary, adidas’ heralded BOOST technology has popularized the 3-Stripes running and performance catalog to new heights. While the overtly cushioned solution has...
The adidas Superstar “Conchas” Is A Playful Homage To Mexico’s Pan Dulce
Over the years, adidas has released handfuls of its designs in clever ensembles. For its latest cheeky offering, the Three Stripes has looked to Mexico,...
adidas Is Bringing Back The Ozweego 3 From 1998
Dozens of old school adidas footwear has long been forgotten by time, but the brand is trying to revive some of its storied franchises. Recently,...
The adidas Y-3 ITOGO “Blue” Is Available Now
For the better part of two decades, Yohji Yamamoto and the 3-Stripes have been melding the German sportswear brand’s performance ethos with the Japanese designer’s...
The adidas Samba OG Comes Cured In “Chalk Green”
As the German sportswear brand’s longest-running silhouette in production, the adidas Samba nowadays is most typically associated with collaborative collections, making the silhouettes’ appearance in...
The adidas Ultra Boost Comes Concealed In “Blue Camo”
Over the past few months, the adidas Ultra Boost has slowly begun to receive an uptick in releases, returning to the palettes that iconized the...