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Thursday 7 July 2011

Adidas

Trained as a cobbler, Adolf Dassler started to produce his own sports shoes in his mother's laundry after his return from World War I. On July 1, 1924, his older brother Rudolf Dassler joined the business, which became the Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik (Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory).


The Dasslers equipped many athletes at the 1928 Olympics, laying the foundation for the international expansion of the company.

During the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, the Dasslers secretly equipped Jesse Owens of the USA with a pair of track shoes. His footwear helped him win four gold medals for the Americans. This gift is said to have spared the Dassler's factory from destruction from Allied forces. It was the first ever sponsorship of an African-American athlete.

Adolf and Rudolph Dassler were both one-time members of the Nazi Party.

Adidas was founded on August 18, 1949 by Adolf Dassler, following a family feud at the Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik company between him and Rudolf. His older brother had established Puma the previous year, which quickly became the business rival of Adidas.



Adolf Dassler went by the nickname Adi, because his real name had become rather unpopular. The second half of Adidas, Das, was the first three letters of his surname.

Adidas acquired in 1952 its signature 3-stripe logo from a Finnish athletic footwear brand named Karhu Sports for two bottles of whiskey and the equivalent of 1600 euros.

Adidas made the leap from shoe company to sports-apparel brand when they introduced the Franz Beckenbauer tracksuit in 1967.

The rivalry between Adidas and Puma became so fierce that the German town of Herzogenaurach (where both companies had their headquarters) became known as "the town of bent necks", as no local would start a conversation with another without first looking down to check which firm's shoes they were wearing.

Today Adidas is the world's second-largest sporting-goods company after Nike, employing more than 50,000 people in more than 160 nations.

An Adidas Store in Vaughan Mills

As well as Adidas, other brands under its umbrella include of Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade golf company, Rockfort shoe manufacturing company and Maxfli golf balls.

David Beckham has a lifetime endorsement agreement with Adidas worth $160.8 million.

Source Wikipedia

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