Nazi Roots of Adidas

Adidas was founded in 1924 in Weimar-era Germany by cobbler brothers Adolf (“Adi”) and Rudolf Dassler. It was called Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik (Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory), or Geda for short. The Dassler brothers were among the first to develop spiked shoes, which featured nails driven through the soles to assist runners on uneven terrain.

On May 1, 1933, the Dassler brothers formally joined the Nazi party. Both brothers carried party membership cards and ended their letters with “Heil Hitler.” During Nazi rule, the Dasslers’ sneaker sales rapidly increased, leading to a significant expansion of their company. Many German athletes who attended the infamous 1936 Berlin Olympic Games wore the Dasslers’ shoes.

In 1935, Adi joined the Hitler Youth as a sports coach and supplied shoes to the organization.

During World War II, the Dassler brothers’ shoe factories were converted into Nazi munitions factories. The Dassler brothers had a part in manufacturing the Panzerschreck, or "Stovepipe,” which was fashioned after the American bazooka.

After the war, Rudolf was detained for a year in a prisoner-of-war camp for his wartime involvement, while Adi distanced himself from Nazi associations.

In 1949, a rift between the brothers led them to part ways and establish rival shoe companies: Adi founded Adidas and Rudolf created Puma.

Today, Adidas recognizes Adi Dassler as the founder and the company’s roots in pre-war Germany but does not mention its Nazi roots.

Adidas has faced criticism from the Jewish community for controversial actions and partnerships.

Adidas began working with Kanye West in 2013, and the collaboration quickly gained popularity through the Yeezy brand. However, in 2022, West made offensive remarks promoting anti-Semitic tropes about Jews via social media and interviews. Following an uproar and threats of a boycott of their products, Adidas ended its partnership with West.

In 2024, Adidas released shoes modeled after Adidas’ SL72 sneakers, a design used at the 1972 Summer Olympic Games, the site of the Munich Massacre in which the Palestinian terror group Black September murdered 11 Israeli athletes. Adidas hired supermodel Bella Hadid for its ad campaign, provoking outrage in the Jewish community because of her anti-Israel and sometimes anti-Semitic rhetoric. Adidas apologized for the reference to the tragic event and canceled the campaign but also apologized to Hadid.

Sources: Andrew Lapin, “The Nazi history of Adidas, the sportswear giant that took weeks to drop Kanye West over antisemitism,” Jewish Telegraphic Agency, (October 24, 2022).
“History,” Adidas.
Olivia B. Waxman, “Adidas’ Dark History Is in the Spotlight as It Ends Deal With Kanye West Over His Antisemitic Comments,” Time, (October 26, 2022).
Bobby Allyn, “Adidas cuts ties with Ye over antisemitic remarks that caused an uproar,” NPR, (October 25, 2022).
Caitlin O’Kane, “Adidas apologizes to Bella Hadid following backlash over shoe ad linked to 1972 Munich Olympics,” CBS News, (July 23, 2024).
Nur Ibrahim, “Was Adidas Founded by a Former Nazi?,” Snopes, (November 1, 2022).
Louis Keene, “Adidas chose a pro-Palestinian activist to promote its new shoe. It didn’t go as planned,” Forward, (July 18, 2024).