A Town Split in Two: The Story of Adidas and Puma

In the 1920s, in a small German town called Herzogenaurach, two brothers started making sports shoes in their mother's laundry room. Their names were Adolf and Rudolf Dassler. Adolf, who went by the nickname "Adi," was quiet and loved inventing things. He spent hours trying to make lighter shoes with better grip for athletes. Rudolf, who went by "Rudi," was charming and outgoing. He was a great salesman who could convince anyone to buy their footwear. Together, they started the Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory.

The brothers became famous around the world during the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin. Adi took a suitcase full of handmade spiked running shoes to the Olympic Village. He convinced Jesse Owens, a superstar track athlete from the United States, to wear them. When Owens won four gold medals, athletes everywhere wanted Dassler shoes. Business boomed, and the brothers became very successful.

However, success did not keep the brothers happy. Over time, their different personalities caused arguments. Adi thought Rudi was too bold, and Rudi felt Adi did not value his sales skills. During World War II, things became much worse. The brothers and their families argued constantly, and they stopped trusting each other. By the end of the war, their friendship was completely ruined.

In 1948, the brothers decided to divide the company in half. They split the factory, the machines, and even the workers. Adi created a new company called Adidas, using his nickname and the start of his last name. Rudi started a rival business that he eventually called Puma. The two new factories were built on opposite sides of the Aurach River, splitting the town in half.

This bitter feud changed the whole town. Herzogenaurach became known as "the town of bent necks" because people looked down at a person's shoes before deciding whether to say hello. People who wore Adidas shopped at certain bakeries, while people who wore Puma shopped at different stores. Workers from the two companies rarely mixed or spoke.

Even though the brothers stayed enemies for the rest of their lives, their competition made sports history. Because each brother wanted to beat the other, both companies worked hard to invent better athletic shoes and sign the best athletes. Today, Adidas and Puma remain two of the biggest sports brands in the world.