Adidas Football history

The name Adidas (written “adidas” by the company) is an abbreviation of the name of founder Adolf (“Adi”) Dassler. The Dassler family began manufacturing shoes after World War I. At the 1936 Berlin Olympics, the American track-and-field star Jesse Owens wore shoes that were reportedly a gift from Adi Dassler. Owens’s medal-winning performances increased awareness of the Dassler brand around the world. After the disruptions of World War II, Adi and his brother Rudolf (“Rudi”) strove to rebuild the Dassler firm, but a personal breach between the brothers had become irreparable by 1948. The business therefore split in two: Rudi’s company was eventually called Puma, while Adi’s became Adidas.