World's Most Powerful 100 Brands 2026 · Second Global Mega Edition
#12 adidas
adidas is ranked #12 in the WCRC World's Most Powerful 100 Brands 2026, with a WCRC Power Score of 80.89. The Three Stripes are among the most recognised marks in the world, and record 2025 revenue plus a strong World Cup year have put the brand firmly back on the front foot.
Five WCRC pillars, 50 parameters, each scored 0 to 100 against global sector peers. The pillar weights set how much each one counts toward the Power Score.
Brand Positioning & Recall28%87.0
Consumer Trust & Sentiment26%81.8
Product, Innovation & Delivery20%78.8
Sustainability, Governance & ESG16%72.0
Digital Presence & Financial Soundness10%79.8
P1 · Brand Positioning & Recall 87.0 · weight 28%
Positioning Clarity & Coherence86
Unaided Brand Recall92
Top-of-Mind Awareness (TOMA)86
Brand Differentiation Index82
Campaign Effectiveness & Recall88
Brand Personality Coherence82
Share of Voice vs Share of Market86
Cultural & Contextual Relevance90
Brand Extension Credibility84
Visual Identity Distinctiveness94
How the Power Score adds up
Each pillar's score multiplied by its WCRC weight. The segments sum to 80.89.
adidas draws its power first from recognition. It scores 87.0 on Brand Positioning & Recall, its strongest WCRC pillar, and two of its three best parameters are Visual Identity Distinctiveness and Unaided Brand Recall. The Three Stripes, the trefoil and the Samba silhouette are known on football pitches, running tracks and city streets in every major market, and the brand moves between sport and culture more easily than almost any rival.
The second driver is momentum. Under chief executive Bjørn Gulden, adidas has turned a difficult 2023 into steady growth. Revenue reached a record EUR24.8bn in 2025, up 10% on a currency-neutral basis, and operating profit rose to EUR2.06bn. In the second quarter of 2026 revenue grew 14% currency-neutral to EUR6.74bn, and the company raised its full-year growth guidance to 9-10%. The 2026 FIFA World Cup, where adidas is official supplier, gave the brand its biggest stage; adidas said its World Cup campaigns were the most successful in its history, backed by EUR924m of marketing in the second quarter alone.
Performance products keep the sport credentials honest. At the 2026 London Marathon two runners broke the two-hour barrier wearing the Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3. adidas scores 81.8 on Consumer Trust & Sentiment and 79.8 on Digital Presence & Financial Soundness. The softer areas are Sustainability, Governance & ESG at 72.0 and supply chain: production is concentrated in Asia and US tariffs have squeezed gross margin. Past controversies, from the Yeezy split to the 2024 SL72 campaign, have faded, and the brand's sentiment trend is among the most positive in its sector.
Why adidas ranks #12
adidas wins on recognition and momentum: a mark known everywhere, recall that crosses sport and street culture, and sentiment that has improved sharply since 2023.
1.10Visual Identity Distinctiveness94
Visual Identity Distinctiveness: the Three Stripes and the trefoil are recognised without the name. adidas bought the three-stripe mark from Finnish brand Karhu in 1952, and has used it on every product line since.
1.02Unaided Brand Recall92
Unaided Brand Recall: adidas is one of the two sportswear names people produce unprompted, helped by its role as official supplier to the 2026 FIFA World Cup and a ten-year Liverpool kit deal that began in 2025-26.
2.09Sentiment Trajectory (12-Month Trend)90
Sentiment Trajectory (12-Month Trend): the mood around adidas has improved steadily. Revenue rose 10% currency-neutral in 2025 and 14% in the second quarter of 2026, and guidance for 2026 was raised in July.
The Achilles' heel
3.09Supply Chain Reliability & Availability74
Supply Chain Reliability & Availability scores 74, adidas's weakest evidenced parameter. Most production is concentrated in Asia, and US tariffs have pressured gross margin in 2026, with only partial refunds received.
What would move it: Spreading sourcing across more countries and building more regional capacity close to the US and European markets would reduce tariff exposure and protect availability.
The 2026 story
2026 was adidas's World Cup year. As official supplier to the tournament it ran what it called the most successful campaigns in its history, spending EUR924m on marketing in the second quarter.
The numbers followed. After record 2025 revenue of EUR24.8bn and operating profit of EUR2.06bn, second-quarter 2026 revenue rose 14% currency-neutral to EUR6.74bn and first-half operating profit reached EUR1.28bn. On 30 July the company raised its 2026 growth guidance to 9-10%. On the track, two runners went under two hours at the London Marathon in adidas shoes.
The main risk is cost. US tariffs are weighing on gross margin, and sourcing remains concentrated in Asia. The brand also has to keep its lifestyle hits, such as the Samba and Gazelle, fresh as fashion cycles turn.
Five-year comparison
Official figures as reported, EUR m. adidas AG consolidated net sales and operating profit, calendar years; 2021 and 2022 restated for continuing operations after the Reebok divestiture (adidas Annual Report 2025 ten-year overview).
+17%Revenue, FY2021 to FY2025
4.0%Annual growth
8.3%Operating margin, FY2025
-1.1 ptsMargin change
Bars: revenue · line: operating margin
Year
Revenue
Operating income
Margin
FY2021
21,234
1,986
9.4%
FY2022
22,511
669
3.0%
FY2023
21,427
268
1.3%
FY2024
23,683
1,337
5.6%
FY2025
24,811
2,056
8.3%
WCRC analysis
Revenue rose from EUR21.2bn in 2021 to EUR24.8bn in 2025, up 17%, but the path was uneven. Operating profit fell from EUR1.99bn to just EUR268m in 2023, a margin of 1%, as the end of the Yeezy partnership and high inventories hit results. It then rebounded to EUR1.34bn in 2024 and EUR2.06bn in 2025, an 8% margin.
The defining moment is the 2023 low and the recovery that followed. In two years adidas grew operating profit almost eightfold while revenue reached a record. That rebound shows the brand kept its pull with consumers through a hard period, which is why its WCRC sentiment trajectory score is so high.
Is adidas the most powerful sportswear brand in 2026?
adidas is ranked #12 in the WCRC World's Most Powerful 100 Brands 2026 with a WCRC Power Score of 80.89, the highest of any sportswear brand in the edition, ahead of Nike at #42.
What rank is adidas in the WCRC World's Most Powerful 100 Brands 2026?
adidas is ranked #12 of 100 in the Second Global Mega Edition, with a WCRC Power Score of 80.89.
What is adidas's biggest strength?
Recognition. Its top WCRC parameters are Visual Identity Distinctiveness, Unaided Brand Recall and Sentiment Trajectory, and it scores 87.0 on Brand Positioning & Recall.
What is adidas's weakest area?
Supply Chain Reliability & Availability, at 74, because production is concentrated in Asia and US tariffs have squeezed gross margin.
Who leads adidas?
Bjørn Gulden has been chief executive of adidas AG since January 2023. adidas AG is listed in Frankfurt and has no controlling shareholder.
About this assessment
The WCRC Power Score is WCRC's own assessment under the WCRC Brand Value Research Methodology (2026 Edition): 50 parameters across five weighted pillars, each scored 0 to 100 against global sector peers. Read the methodology.
