Sneaker Wars
How about this for shoe feuding

If you haven’t read Sneaker Wars by Barbara Smit (2008), you might not know the history of — or even be aware of — the feud between PUMA and adidas.

Well beyond simply landing pro athletes or putting out the hottest product, this goes way back to Germany, where brothers Adi and Rudi Dassler began Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik (”Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory”) out of their mother’s house in 1924 and blew up on the scene when Jesse Owens wore their track spikes at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. By the end of World War II, however, the brothers had bitterly fallen out for personal and political reasons and split the company into the two brands you know now. Even well after their deaths, PUMA and adidas have fought over everything from endorsement deals to advertising space to mere survival in the industry.


So a couple days ago, when employees from each company got together and played a soccer game on Global Peace Day, it was actually a big deal. The match took place in Herzogenaurach, Germany, where both companies are based (and a vacation spot on the bucket list of the most avid sneakerheads).

“The symbolic handshake of adidas and PUMA helped to raise awareness for Global Peace Day and the necessity for non-violence and ceasefire,” said PUMA CEO Jochen Zeitz. Zeitz played goalie for Team Puma, adidas CEO Herbert Hainer played midfield for his squad.

Of course, this couldn’t go down with some kind of product element. To commemorate the game, adidas and PUMA collaborated on a soccer uniform (”football kit”) that combines adidas’ famous three stripes with PUMA’s iconic big cat. Only 80 kits were produced, and they’ll be auctioned off for charity.
9/24/09

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