For adidas, 2022 was the year of football and running. With the FIFA World Cup, UEFA Women’s EURO, and major marathons taking center stage, adidas teams and athletes, as well as sporting communities around the globe had many reasons to celebrate.
In November, it was time again for sports’ biggest stage: the FIFA World Cup. Sporting the classic light blue and white striped jersey, Argentina won their third World Cup title after beating France in a memorable final. With the win, the name of longtime adidas partner and football icon Lionel Messi has finally made it into the history books. Not only was he the first player ever to score a goal at every stage of the World Cup, but he also set a new overall record with 26 World Cup appearances.
To coincide with the tournament, adidas launched ‘The Family Reunion’ – the latest chapter of our ‘Impossible is Nothing’ campaign. The heroe film featured, among others, football icons Karim Benzema, Achraf Hakimi, and Pedro González López, who came together for a reunion immersed in World Cup nostalgia. adidas also provided the federation kits for the national teams of Argentina, Belgium, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Spain, and Wales, as well as the official match balls ‘Al Rihla’, (‘The Journey’) and ‘Al Hilm’ (‘The Dream’). Both balls feature new connected ball technology, enhancing the VAR (Video Assistant Referee) system by providing an unprecedented level of data and information.
Originally scheduled for 2021 but postponed due to the covid-19 pandemic, the UEFA Women’s EURO, hosted by England, was the 13th edition of the tournament. adidas acted as the official outfitter for the national teams of Belgium, Germany, Northern Ireland, Spain, and Sweden. Prior to the championship in July, we were especially proud to have been host to final participant Germany, whose women’s national team stayed on the campus in Herzogenaurach for around two weeks to prepare for the tournament.
2022 was an extraordinary year for running, especially for the adidas Adizero franchise. Half of the world’s major marathons were won by adidas athletes. In April, Kenyan superstars and adidas athletes Peres Jepchirchir and Evans Chebet dominated the 126th edition of the Boston Marathon, winning both their races. Only half a year later, Chebet stormed to victory wearing adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3 running shoes in his debut at the New York City Marathon. He was the first man to win both the Boston and New York marathons in the same year since 2011.
adidas athletes also showed up strong at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Oregon, securing eight titles and breaking four records, including Tamirat Tola, making history in the men’s marathon by taking home gold in the Adizero Adios Pro 2 and breaking the World Athletics Championships record that had stood since 2009. Shaunae Miller-Uibo became world champion in the women’s 400 meters race in the Adizero Prime SP2, while Tobi Amusan set a new world record in the 100 meters hurdles semi-final and stormed to gold in the final wearing the Adizero Avanti.
