Their approaches laid the groundwork for what we now call sports marketing the strategic partnership between brands and athletes that shapes global culture. From Michael Jordan’s Air Jordans to modern influencer collaborations, the Dasslers’ rivalry planted the seeds. Decades after their deaths, the Adidas Puma feud has softened, but echoes remain in Herzogenaurach. In 2009, employees from both companies played a friendly football match the first public gesture of peace between the two sides in over 60 years.
