Founder: Adolf Dassler
Headquarters: America California
Area served: Worldwide
Key people: Herbert Hainer (CEO), Robin Stalker (CFO),
Erich Stamminger (CEO, Adidas Brand), Igor Landau (Chairman of the supervisory board)
Products: Footwear, sportswear, sports equipment, toiletries
Revenue: €11.99 billion (2010)
Operating income: €894 million (2010)
Profit: €567 million (2010)
Total assets: €10.62 billion (end 2010)
Total equity: €4.616 billion (end 2010)
Employees: 42,540 (end 2010)
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, golf company (including Ashworth), and Rockport. Besides sports footwear, the company also produces other products such as bags, shirts, watches, eyewear, and other sports- and clothing-related goods.The company is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe and the second-biggest sportswear manufacturer in the world, with American rival Nike being the biggest.
Adidas was founded in 1948 by Adolf "Adi" Dassler, following the split of Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik between him and his older brother Rudolf. Rudolf later established Puma, which was the early rival of Adidas. Registered in 1949, Adidas is currently based in Herzogenaurach, Germany, along with Puma.
The company's clothing and shoe designs typically feature three parallel bars, and the same motif is incorporated into Adidas's current official logo. The "Three Stripes" were bought from the Finnish sport company Karhu Sports in 1951. The company revenue for 2009 was listed at €10.38 billion and the 2008 figure at €10.80 billion.
Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik
Adolf "Adi" Dassler started to produce his own sports shoes in his mother's wash kitchen in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria after his return from World War I. On 1 July 1924, his brother Rudolf "Rudi" Dassler joined the business, which became Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik (Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory) and prospered. The pair started the venture in their mother's laundry, but, at the time, electricity supplies in the town were unreliable, and the brothers sometimes had to use pedal power from a stationary bicycle to run their equipment.
By the 1936 Summer Olympics, Adi Dassler drove from Bavaria on one of the world's first motorways to the Olympic village with a suitcase full of spikes and persuaded U.S. sprinter Jesse Owens to use them, the first sponsorship for an African American. Following Owens's haul of four gold medals, his success cemented the good reputation of Dassler shoes among the world's most famous sportsmen. Letters from around the world landed on the brothers' desks, and the trainers of other national teams were all interested in their shoes. Business boomed and the Dasslers were selling 200,000 pairs of shoes each year before World War II. Late in World War II, the shoe factory shifted to production of the Panzerschreck anti-tank weapon.
Company split
Both brothers joined the Nazi Party, but Rudolf was slightly closer to the party. During the war, a growing rift between the pair reached a breaking point after an Allied bomb attack in 1943 when Adi and his wife climbed into a bomb shelter that Rudolf and his family were already in: "The dirty bastards are back again," Adi said, referring to the Allied war planes, but Rudolf was convinced his brother meant him and his family. After Rudolf was later picked up by American soldiers and accused of being a member of the Waffen SS, he was convinced that his brother had turned him in.
The brothers split up in 1947, with
- Rudi forming a new firm that he called Ruda – from Rudolf Dassler, later rebranded Puma
- and Adi forming a company formally registered as adidas AG from Adi Dassler on 18 August 1949. The acronym All Day I Dream About Sport, although sometimes considered the origin of the adidas name, was applied retroactively, which makes it a backronym. The name is actually a portmanteau formed from "Adi" (a nickname for Adolf) and "Das" (from "Dassler").
One of the main focuses of Adidas is football kit and associated equipment. Adidas remain a major company in the supply of team kits for international football teams.
Adidas also makes referee kits that are used in international competition and by many countries and leagues in the world. The company has been an innovator in the area of footwear for the sport, with notable examples including development of the Copa Mundial moulded boot used for matches on firm dry pitches for almost forty years. The studded equivalent was named World Cup follow in celebration of the 1978 tournament won by Argentina, one of the nations it supplied at the time. Some of the most famous football teams are currently sponsored by Adidas.
Adidas became renowned for advancing the Predator boot design developed by ex-Liverpool and Australian international player Craig Johnston. This design featured a ribbed rubber structure for the upper leather of the shoe, used to accent the movement of the ball when struck; highly skilled players claimed they were able to curve the flight of the ball more easily when wearing this new contoured design. The Predator also features the Craig Johnston-invented Traxion sole.
Adidas also introduced another new ball for the 2010 World Cup. The Jabulani ball was designed and developed by Loughborugh University in conjunction with Chelsea FC. It received much criticism from players, managers and pundits for being too hard to control. The lighter and more aerodynamic ball led to many shots and passes being over hit. The Jabulani was widely blamed for the low numbers of long range goals or even remotely accurate attempts in the opening stage of the tournament.
History of Adidas logo
Adidas logo was created by Adi Dassler (founder of Adidas). Following the success in 1972, Adidas adopted “Trefoil logo”- of flower like design. The three leaves symbolize the Olympic spirit, linked to the three continental plates as well as the heritage and history of the brand. This logo has been a great success, combining elements of simplistic design with multiple meanings.
New logo was represented in 1994. Three-Stripe brand logo became the worldwide Adidas corporate logo. The logo has the advantage of being relatively simple: at its heart it is just three straight, parallel bars. This logo signifies performance and the future of the ultimate Adidas branding identity.
Adidas logo has a powerful impact of sophistication and durability. In addition, the logo design features including shape, color and font enforce a great impression when it comes under assessment of graphic designer. Shape of the logo, which is three parallel lines, portrays the basic ideology and historical brand position and corporate well-being. Black color theme insists to stimulate the striking youth culture. Black also indicates passion, and inspires to revive spirits of masses who are significantly involved in sports and athletic activities. Following the shape and colors, the fonts are simple nevertheless catchy and prominent. As Leonardo da Vinci quoted, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”, Adidas continues to pursuit the way by maintaining the simple, yet innovative logo design.
In this entire evolution, Adidas logo remains to be design known for motivating all groups of young. So far, it has almost accomplished nearly all the goals the founder had dreamt of, and still to admire the future of coming generations.
ADIDAS BOOTS
Adidas has a great history in football boots with names to remember, Predator, Copa Mundial, World Cup, F50, Absolado, Adipure to name a few. Their new styling and added features make them a must for any player.
The new Adidas boots of David Beckham of AC Milan are seen during a training session during the AC Milan Winter Training Camp at the Al Nasr Sports Club on January 4, 2009 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Lionel Messi attends a press conference during the launch of the new adiZero footwear range from adidas on January 13, 2011 in Barcelona, Spain.
The leather versions of the F50 adizero have been extremely popular with the pro's, citing Lionel Messi and Arjen Robben as just two outstanding players who opt for the leather versions. Well now adidas can bring you one step closer to the advantages of an elite player, by incorporating your own personal statistician in the shape of the adidas miCoach Speed Cell.
Through out history, humans have enjoyed kicking a ball or something like a ball. South American Indians were known to use a light elasticized ball. However; rubber was not to be practically manufactured until a few thousand years later.
According to historical references and legend, early balls ranged from human heads, stitched up cloth, animal and human skulls to pig or cow bladders. Adidas first began the production of footballs in 1963 and is the world’s leading manufacturer, always at the cutting edge of technology and design. Adidas has supplied the Match Balls to all major UEFA and FIFA tournaments since 1970 and will also be the Official Partner and Ball Supplier of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cup™.
Official World Cup Match Balls
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Telstar: Mexico, 1970
Adidas started to make soccer balls in 1963 but made the first official FIFA World Cup ball in 1970. The first ball used in the World Cup to use the Buckminster type of design.The first ball with 32 black and white panels. The TELSTAR was more visible on black and white televisions (1970 FIFA World Cup Mexico™ was the first to be broadcast live on television).
Telstar Durlast: West Germany, 1974
The TELSTAR was again used. Another version was the Chile Durlast ball which did not have the black panels.
Tango Durlast: Argentina, 1978
The ball design represented elegance, dynamism and passion.
Tango Espana: Spain, 1982
Adidas introduced a new ball which had rubber inlaid over the seams to prevent water from seeping through. The first ball with water-resistant qualities. General wear from kicking however meant the rubber began to wear after a short time and needed to be replaced during the game. The last genuine leather world cup ball.
Azteca: Mexico, 1986
The FIFA World Cup Mexico, saw the introduction of the first polyurethane coated ball which was rain-resistant. The first synthetic match ball, with good qualities on hard and wet surfaces.
Etrvsco: Italy, 1990
The first ball with an internal layer of black polyurethane foam.
Questra: USA, 1994
FIFA World Cup USA, 1994, official ball which was enveloped in a layer of polystyrene foam.
This not only made it more waterproof but allowed the ball greater acceleration when kicked. The new game ball felt softer to the touch. Improved ball control and higher velocity during play.
Tricolore: France, 1998
By 1998, FIFA World Cup France was played with a ball which sported the French red-white-blue tri-color. A complete departure from the old traditional black and white pattern. The first official World Cup colored soccer ball. The TRICOLORE used underglass print technology with a thin layer of syntactic foam.
Fevernova: Korea Japan, 2002
For FIFA World Cup Korea Japan, 2002, Adidas created a new ball made up of thicker inner layers to increase the accuracy of the ball in flight.
Teamgeist: Germany, Berlin
Teamgeist means team spirit, something the Germans have long thrived on instead of individual brilliance. The new 14-panel design has resulted in a ball with the most consistent performance characteristics ever, enabling the players to show their true skills.
Jabulani: South Africa 2010
“JABULANI”, the Official Match Ball for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa. Jabulani - means “to celebrate” in isiZulu.
Adidas Finale UEFA Champions League Balls
The Adidas Finale was developed based on the Adidas Terrestra Silverstream, the Official Matchball of the UEFA European Football Championship 2000™. This ball was also made with the same type of materials and construction used for the Adidas Fevernova, except of course the graphics.
The Adidas Finale features a unique design, inspired by the UEFA Champions League starball logo, one of the most recognizable symbols in world football. The new design is completely different from the traditional Adidas Tango design. This underlines Adidas’ commitment to break new ground in the new millennium developing new and distinct products for the most important events in football. The exclusive Champions League design inextricably links adidas and the new matchball to the very best of football.
Adidas Euro 2000-2008 Match Balls
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The title and design of this particularly futuristic looking ball were dedicated to the rivers of the host countries, (Belgium and Holland) to which they owe their prosperity via trading routes and transportation of goods. The locals nicknamed these waterways “silver streams” due to the way their surfaces sparkle brightly in the early morning sun.
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The Roteiro is the first ever Official Match Ball produced with the innovative thermal-bonding production technique. The Roteiro is named after the logbook used by Vasco da Gama, the famous Portuguese discoverer. The unique and dynamic design features an aqua metallic base color, which represents the sky, a blue globe color reminiscent of the sea, and silver lines to signify the co-ordinate system used and perfected by the Portuguese.
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The ball’s new surface structure allows players to control and direct it perfectly in all weather conditions. The revolutionary PSC- Texture™ consists of a sophisticated and extremely fine structure on the ball’s outer skin that guarantees optimum grip between ball and boot. The unique outer skin improves power transmission, creates greater swerve and increases accuracy on the pitch, in all conceivable weather conditions.
