Adidas vs Puma Part 1

I thought it would be interesting to compare some of the adidas and Puma models made over the years. As you all know the two firms were born out of a sibling rivalry between Adi and Rudolf beginning in the late 1940s. Both companies made technical innovations in the sports shoe industry and both were guilty of peering over the others shoulder from time to time which often ended up a bitterly contested legal dispute in court. Here’s a look at some models which bear more than a passing resemblance to one another….

Adidas first produced this boot in 1948 as the ‘Basketballstiefel’ and they were issued to the occupying American troops based in Bavaria. They became known as the ‘Allround’ in 1954 and went through a number of changes in design throughout their long history - here is what they looked like in 1964.

Puma also produced a similar boot called ‘Basket’, note the colourway and same holes cut into the sole. These acted as a rudimentary suction cups.