Grupo adidas

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60 years of adidas – the stories that still inspire us today adidas, one of the leading sports brands in the world, is turning 60 on August 18, 2009. It still seems an unlikely story: a modest shoemaker from a small rural town in Germany develops a range of sports products so original and so perfect that they are sought by athletes from all over the world. As he indulges his passion for sport and for innovation, he creates a brand as great as any in the world. An unlikely story, but not impossible. Impossible is Nothing. For adidas, it all started with shoes. Shoes to play in. Shoes to play better in. Shoes to win in. Shoes that, one day, would tread Wembley and Wimbledon, win medals at the Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cup™. Athletes would wear them, record-breakers, and champions. Today, adidas is one of the world’s leading brands, recognised and respected. Passion, authenticity, innovation, inspiration, honesty and commitment – that is what adidas means to us. But above all, it is the stories that made Adi Dassler’s idea and principle “no athlete left behind” come to life on the biggest sports stages around the world. Today, we would like to share some of our stories with you - stories of shoes, champions, recordbreakers. Stories of adidas.

The Decades 1949 – 1959 // 1960 – 1969 // 1970 – 1979 // 1980 – 1989 // 1990 – 1999 // Since 2000

1949 – 1959 On August 18th, 1949, Adi Dassler first registered adidas in the commercial register (Handelsregister) in Fürth (near Herzogenaurach). The official name of the company back then was “Adolf Dassler adidas Sportschuhfabrik”. First used in 1949, the 3-Stripes would not stay confined to their birthplace Herzogenaurach but started their victory lap around the world early on to become the most famous symbol and key identifier of adidas. It might not have looked pretty, but when you win three gold medals in seven days, no one cares about pretty. With his tongue hanging out while running, Emil Zátopek