Adidas Olympic background info and history

At first glance, Adidas don't seem to have a lot of history with the Olympics. Even on the London 2012 partners page of the website, they are only listed as a 'London 2012 Official Partner' rather than a 'Worldwide Partner', but that would be a wrong assumption. 

Adidas have slowly become more prominent at the Olympics, and it started to become a major partner at Beijing 2008. This has grown more and more until, for the 2012 Olympics, it was revealed that Adidas have actually invested in training facilities in the five London Olympic boroughs. 

So Adidas have been doing rather well at contributing to the London 2012 legacy and being part of the Olympic family, but what's in it for them?

Well, from a branding point of view, the 'eyes of the world' will definitely be a good start, as will their association with Team GB and athletic success throughout Olympic history in general, as this Adidas heritage page points out well.

It seems that, given the attention Adidas will receive as an Olympic partner, they are hoping to harness it to become the 'biggest sportswear company in the UK'. They are currently in second, place behind only Nike. 

So, Adidas's investments and partnerships aren't entirely about creating goodwill. Although no-one  can condemn the fact that Adidas's facilities will be free to use to the public after the games, there can't be any doubt that it is just a part of Adidas's plan to try and make the UK an even more lucrative marketplace for themselves.