In reviewing the year, 2012 was clearly marked by the two major sporting events of the summer, the Olympic Games in London and the UEFA EURO™ in Poland and Ukraine. adidas was front and centre at both events. But there was so much more to report on: the memorable ‘all in’ adidas Champions League final between Chelsea FC and FC Bayern in Munich, the first NEO stores in Germany, record sales, Selena Gomez… This blog post brings back some of the highlights of the last 12 months.

You have followed us closely on the adidas Group blog throughout the year. I would like to thank you for your interest in our Group and hope you enjoyed reading and watching our posts. Please stay tuned! We will be back with more insights into our work as of January 7th, 2013. Until then, the blog team and I wish you Happy Holidays!

January

The sport of fitness arrives – with a great new campaign, Reebok ushers in a new era of fitness, changing the way people perceive, define and experience it by showing that fitness is a sport

February

The first European NEO store opens in Hamburg – Sebastian, the store manager, gives us insights into how the opening was prepared:

March

adidas releases the newest chapter of the ‘adidas is all in’ campaign. Christy explains why the campaign is so special:

April

Transparency is a key value in sustainability reporting. The publishing of our “Performance Counts: 2011 Sustainability Progress Report” underlines this statement:

May

Three days before the UEFA Champions League final 2012 took place in Munich, you can see the anticipation rising pretty much everywhere at our World of SportsThe World of Sports (WoSThe World of Sports (WoS) is conceived as a campus. The area covers 39 hectares in the northern part of Herzo Base, a former military base a few miles outside of Herzogenaurach, Germany. It offers truly unique surroundings for the corporate headquarters of the adidas Group. Besides office buildings, it features sports and outdoor areas, state-of-the-art exhibition halls and an award-winning staff restaurant located on the banks of an artificial lake. The newly renovated comb-shaped office buildings house the majority of the Herzogenaurach-based adidas Group employees.) is conceived as a campus. The area covers 39 hectares in the northern part of Herzo Base, a former military base a few miles outside of Herzogenaurach, Germany. It offers truly unique surroundings for the corporate headquarters of the adidas Group. Besides office buildings, it features sports and outdoor areas, state-of-the-art exhibition halls and an award-winning staff restaurant located on the banks of an artificial lake. The newly renovated comb-shaped office buildings house the majority of the Herzogenaurach-based adidas Group employees.. Our employees go “all in” with cheers and chants for their team:

June

adidas is THE football brand and reinforces this status by leading the way at the UEFA EURO 2012™. During a media event in Poland we tell you how adidas successfully activates its role as Official Partner of UEFA EURO 2012™ and how this event positively influences our football sales in 2012. In the end, Spain, an adidas team, takes the European Championship title:

July

The Olympic spirit breezes through the World of SportsThe World of Sports (WoSThe World of Sports (WoS) is conceived as a campus. The area covers 39 hectares in the northern part of Herzo Base, a former military base a few miles outside of Herzogenaurach, Germany. It offers truly unique surroundings for the corporate headquarters of the adidas Group. Besides office buildings, it features sports and outdoor areas, state-of-the-art exhibition halls and an award-winning staff restaurant located on the banks of an artificial lake. The newly renovated comb-shaped office buildings house the majority of the Herzogenaurach-based adidas Group employees.) is conceived as a campus. The area covers 39 hectares in the northern part of Herzo Base, a former military base a few miles outside of Herzogenaurach, Germany. It offers truly unique surroundings for the corporate headquarters of the adidas Group. Besides office buildings, it features sports and outdoor areas, state-of-the-art exhibition halls and an award-winning staff restaurant located on the banks of an artificial lake. The newly renovated comb-shaped office buildings house the majority of the Herzogenaurach-based adidas Group employees.: for an employee event the campus of our Headquarters is transformed into a true Olympic Park. That is impressive and a lot of fun!

August

The London 2012 Olympics are really special for me as they mark my 20th anniversary at the Olympic Games. In a video, I review some of my highlights over this period:

September

In 2012, Y-3 celebrates its 10th anniversary as a label of the adidas brand. The Y-3 team organizes a live stream from St. John’s Center in New York City where adidas and Yohji Yamamoto celebrate the collection for Spring/Summer 2013 as part of Mercedes-Benz Fashion week:

October

I am voted ‘Spokesperson of the Year’ by Germany’s business media – this is a great acknowledgement for adidas, the Corporate Communication team and myself:

November

Wow, that’s really great news. The adidas NEO Label announces Selena Gomez as their new global style icon:

December

Herbert Hainer receives the award Honorary Doctor of the University of Loughborough in recognition of his outstanding leadership within the sports equipment business sector. Congratulations!