Three stripes is a
trademark
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from others ...
of
Adidas
Adidas AG (; stylized as adidas since 1949) is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufactur ...
consisting of three parallel lines, which typically feature along the side of Adidas apparel. Adidas was known for this branding early in its history, with its owner,
Adolf Dassler
Adolf "Adi" Dassler (3 November 1900 – 6 September 1978) was a German cobbler, inventor and entrepreneur who founded the German sportswear company Adidas. He was also the younger brother of Rudolf Dassler, founder of Puma. Dassler was an innov ...
, describing it as "The three stripe company".
History
Finnish Sport Museum has a pair of footwear from the 1940s with the three stripes by Finnish athletic footwear brand
Karhu Sports
Karhu is a Finland, Finnish sports equipment company, focused on running (sport), running. Originally established as "Oy Urheilutarpeita" in 1916, it was renamed "Karhu" (meaning ''bear'' in Finnish language, Finnish) four years later. Karhu's lin ...
.
[Item description at Finna image archive]
accessed May 28th 2021 According to another source, the three stripes mark was created by the Adidas company founder, Adolf Dassler, and first used on footwear in 1949, when Adidas was founded.
[ In 1952, following the ]1952 Summer Olympics
The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...
in Finland, Adidas acquired its signature three stripe branding from Karhu Sports, for two bottles of whiskey
Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Various grains (which may be malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky is typically aged in wooden cask ...
and the equivalent of €
The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...
1,600.
The Trefoil logo was designed in 1971 and launched in 1972,[ just in time for the ]1972 Summer Olympics
The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ...
held in Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
. This logo lasted until 1997, when the company introduced the "three bars" logo (that had been designed by then Creative Director Peter Moore), initially used on the ''Equipment'' range of products.[
Designs for shoes registered in 1949 incorporated the three stripes along the side.
]
Branding in sports
In 1998, Adidas sued the National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
over their rules limiting the size and number of commercial logos on team uniforms and apparel. Adidas withdrew the suit, and the two groups established guidelines as to what three-stripe designs would be considered uses of the Adidas trademark.
In late 2004, rival sporting good manufacturers filed a complaint to the International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...
(IOC) over Adidas being allowed to exceed the 20 cm2 limit permitted for branding with the three stripes. Adidas argued that the trademark device was a design element rather than a logo and despite being an IOC sponsor, which led to accusations of Adidas receiving preferential treatment, the three stripes were banned by the Olympic movement starting with the 2006 Winter Games. However, Adidas circumvented the ban by using a modified three stripe design, combining them with the number 3, for the 2006 Games.
In 2006 Adidas sued All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club
The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, also known as the All England Club, based at Church Road, Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, London, England, is a Gentlemen's club, private members' club. It is best known as the venue for the Wimbledon ...
(Wimbledon), other Grand Slam tournaments and the International Tennis Federation
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the governing body of world tennis, wheelchair tennis, and beach tennis. It was founded in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by twelve national tennis associations. As of 2016, there a ...
over restrictions on manufacturer's identifications placed on player clothing.
Prior to UEFA Euro 2008
The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2008 or simply Euro 2008, was the 13th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by the member nations of UEFA (the Union of European ...
, the Union of European Football Associations
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
updated its kit regulations to mandate a 'sleeve free zone' on shirts worn under their auspices, to make room for competition markings. This affected Adidas by prohibiting the use of continual stripes down the sleeves. The world footballing governing body, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association
FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
(FIFA), implemented similar legislation in time for the 2010 FIFA World Cup
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.
In popular culture
The musical artist Lady Sovereign
Louise Amanda Harman (born 19 December 1985), better known by the stage name Lady Sovereign, is a British rapper, best known for the songs " 9 to 5" and "Love Me or Hate Me".
Early life and family
Lady Sovereign grew up in Chalkhill Estate in ...
references the Three Stripes trademark in her song "Hoodie
A hoodie (in some cases spelled hoody and alternatively known as a hooded sweatshirt) is a sweatshirt with a hood. Hoodies with zippers usually include two pockets on the lower front, one on either side of the zipper, while "pullover" hoodies ...
" from the album ''Public Warning
''Public Warning'' is the first studio album by English hip hop artist Lady Sovereign, released on 31 October 2006. Was originally due for release in November 2005 but was pushed back after Lady Sovereign was signed by Island Def Jam.
In a Ju ...
''. The album was released in 2006 and had multiple remixes, again involving references to the Three Stripes trademark.
The music artist Davay (Estonia) made a short hardbass
Hardbass or hard bass ( rus, хардбас(с), khardbas(s), xɐrdˈbas) is a subgenre of pumping house that originated in Saint Petersburg, Russia during the late 1990s, drawing inspiration from bouncy techno, hardstyle, as well as local Rus ...
song named "TRI POLOSKI" (literally meaning "Three Stripes") in 2016.
Since the 1980 Summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...
in Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
, Adidas or "the three-striped brand" has been the trademark of the Russian 'gopniks
A gopnik (russian: гопник, gopnik, ; uk, гопник, hopnyk; be, гопнік, hopnik) is a member of a delinquent subculture in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and in other former Soviet republics — a young man (or a woman, a ''gopnitsa'') ...
' (a stereotypical gang member of the low-class villages of Russia, addicted to vodka and hardbass songs) and therefore being a major subject for hardbass.
Trademark disputes
Adidas has sued or threatened to sue retailers to protect the brand, including the following cases:
* 1983: ''Adidas v Charles O'Neill and Co Ltd'' 1983 ILRM 112
* 1995: settled a dispute with Walmart
* 2000: ''Marca Mode v Adidas'' decided at the European Court of Justice
The European Court of Justice (ECJ, french: Cour de Justice européenne), formally just the Court of Justice, is the supreme court of the European Union in matters of European Union law. As a part of the Court of Justice of the European Un ...
(Case C-425/98)
* 2002: settled with Walmart
* 2003: filed a lawsuit in a British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
court challenging Fitness World Trading's use of a two-stripe motif similar to Adidas' three stripes
* 2004 (August): Polo Ralph Lauren
Ralph Lauren Corporation is an American publicly traded fashion company that was founded in 1967 by American fashion designer Ralph Lauren. The company is headquartered in New York City, producing products ranging from the mid-range to the luxur ...
* 2005: Abercrombie & Fitch
Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F) is an American lifestyle retailer that focuses on casual wear. Its headquarters are in New Albany, Ohio. The company operates three other offshoot brands: Abercrombie Kids, Hollister Co., and Gilly Hicks. As of Februar ...
, in Portland
* 2005 (March): Dutch Court of Appeal decided that Adidas had not sufficiently demonstrated that the Marca Marca may refer to:
Places
* Marca, Sălaj, a commune in Sălaj County, Romania
* Marca, a tributary of the Barcău in Sălaj County, Romania
* an alternative name for Merca, Somalia
* Marca District, in the province Recuay, Peru
* Marçà, a vil ...
two-stripe design did not infringe, based on the Benelux Trademarks Act. (see Benelux Office for Intellectual Property
(BBIE)french: Office Benelux de la Propriété intellectuelle
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)
* 2007 (February): Dutch Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the Netherlands ( nl, Hoge Raad der Nederlanden or simply ''Hoge Raad''), officially the High Council of the Netherlands, is the final court of appeal in civil, criminal and tax cases in the criminal justice system of the ...
ruled in the case Adidas/Marca Mode II that the two stripe of Marca et al. did not infringe the three stripe trade mark of Adidas.
* 2008 (April): European Court of Justice
The European Court of Justice (ECJ, french: Cour de Justice européenne), formally just the Court of Justice, is the supreme court of the European Union in matters of European Union law. As a part of the Court of Justice of the European Un ...
decided in favour of Adidas, against Marca Mode, C&A, H&M Hennes & Mauritz and Vendex KBB, that two-stripes could infringe on the Adidas three-stripe trademark.
* 2008 (May): Kmart
Kmart Corporation ( , doing business as Kmart and stylized as kmart) is an American retail company that owns a chain of big box department stores. The company is headquartered in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, United States.
The company was inc ...
* 2008: Payless ShoeSource
Payless (formerly known as Payless ShoeSource Inc.) is an international discount footwear chain. Established in 1956 by cousins Louis and Shaol Pozez, Payless was a privately held company owned by Blum Capital, and Golden Gate Capital. In 1961, i ...
, ordered to pay $304.6 million; later reduced to $64.4 million. No. 01-CV-01655-RE.
* 2008 (October): Wal-Mart Stores Inc., third confidential settlement
* 2009: Aldo Group Inc., filed 14 January in federal court in Portland, claiming a breach of out-of-court settlements between the companies in 2004 and 2006. ''Adidas America Inc. v. Aldo Group Inc., 3:09- cv-00056''
*2014 Adidas successfully registers the three-stripe design at the European Union level.
*2016 The EU's Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) annuls the 2014 registration on the grounds that it was not distinctive enough.
*2019 EU General Court upholds the 2016 decision of the EUIPO stating that it did not have enough "distinctive character" to qualify for the trademark.
Adidas has also settled with Steven Madden Ltd., Target Corp.
Target Corporation (doing business as Target and stylized in all lowercase since 2018) is an American big box department store chain headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the seventh largest retailer in the United States, and a compon ...
and Nordstrom Inc. before going to trial.
Further reading
*
References
External links
A tale of three stripes and family strife
The Adidas Three-Stripes Saga Continues
Adidas under the microscope (Ip Conference London 23 September 2008)
Three stripes? Think twice
Newsletter - Spring 2009, TLT LLP
Bird & Bird Adidas’ three stripes trade mark: Should Freihaltebedürfnis (public interest) be considered in the infringement assessment?
Adidas defeated in ‘three-stripes’ trademark ruling
{{DEFAULTSORT:Three Stripes
Commercial logos
Adidas
Trademarks