Slide Away: Everything You Need to Know About The adidas Adilette
The adidas Adilette is the 3 stripes king of the pool side slide and now returns to its spiritual home just in time for the holiday season.
There was something pretty special about the West German football team at the UEFA European Championship in 1972. Boasting the likes of Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Müller and Günter Netzer, 1972 would mark West Germany's very first international trophy. It wasn't just the world class players such as Beckenbauer, who also won the Bundesliga title with Bayern Munich & the prestigious Ballon d'Or in the same year, it was the trefoils & the track tops that put the team on another level. As the West German players lined up for the final against the Soviet Union the world was watching. A game that signified Germany's global dilemma, the Berlin wall fiasco & the Soviet controlled GDR. With their trefoil branded 3 stripe track tops & football boots, the West German side put Adi Dassler's iconic 3 stripes on a global stage. The adidas endorsement didn't just stop in the dug out though, it also made its way into the changing rooms in the form of the Adilette, a revolutionary shower shoe that would also debut in '72. As West Germany took European glory, so did Adi Dassler as Germany's elite players celebrated in the communal showers with champagne in their hands & adidas slides on their feet.
Above: The adidas Adilette Aqua Slides in white/black now available from 80s Casual Classics.
Following the bitterly, brotherly feud between the Dassler brothers, Adi Dassler looked to "one-up" his brother at every opportunity. Dassler's first light bulb moment came in the form of football boots with removable studs, a game changer when compared to the traditional moulded stud models. The football connection would also lead to Dassler experimenting with foam injection and modern materials in 1963 to create a functional "slip on" shoe for athletes to wear in the changing rooms. The shower shoe concept came from a close friend of Dassler who was a football manager stating that his players were walking barefoot into the showers after a game, with concerns of hygiene & germs. With the technology he needed not currently available, Dassler held off till the early 70s when he was able to find a machine that could inject foam into the soles of the slides. Introduced officially in 1972 for the West German football team, the slides featured suction pads on the soles to stop the athletes sliding around, hence the name, and also featured the signature 3 stripes across the top.
Above: The adidas Adilette Aqua Slides in navy/whte now available from 80s Casual Classics.
Over the last 50 years the adidas Adilette has become the 3 stripes king of the pool side. Worn by everyone from full tracksuit clad cartel Don's in Breaking Bad to corrupt detective's in Berlin based crime drama's, the Adilette is simply one of the most iconic adidas silhouettes of all time. The great thing about the Adilette is that they can literally be worn for anything such as in the gym changing rooms, around the pool on your jollies or just like a slipper/mule to take the bins out. Now back at its spiritual home, the Adilette features the signature 3 stripes with classic adidas branding to the lateral side sole. A grippy outsole ensures no slips in the shower room or at the pool side, staying true to Adi Dassler's original design concept.