As the 2022 Winter Olympics marked a return to the global sports stage under unprecedented conditions, a lesser-seen but fiercely contested battle played out behind the scenes: the competition between sportswear giants Adidas and Nike to outfit the world’s top athletes. In a feature titled “It’s Adidas vs. Nike in the Battle of the Athlete-Only Winter Olympics Gear,” Wired presents a close look at how these companies leveraged the Olympic spotlight not for direct consumer sales, but for brand prestige and technological innovation.
Unlike the standard commercial launches aimed at the public, Olympic gear remains strictly athlete-exclusive. Designed not for the masses but for performance and visibility on the world stage, these uniforms often push the boundaries of sportswear design. For Adidas and Nike, this is not just about function—though superior performance fabrics and aerodynamic cuts remain essential—but also about symbolism, national identity, and maintaining brand dominance within elite sports.
The Wired piece highlights how each brand tailored its collections with the dual aim of performance enhancement and visual impact. Nike, for instance, collaborated closely with athletes to ensure maximum mobility and thermal performance, while maintaining a bold and recognizable aesthetic. Meanwhile, Adidas worked with national teams like Germany’s, focusing on sustainable materials and high-tech construction to deliver gear that is as innovative as it is environmentally conscious.
This clash of design philosophies and corporate strategies is not new, but the Olympic context adds a layer of complexity. With the Games broadcast to millions worldwide, every jacket, glove, or training pant worn by a medalist becomes a subtle but potent advertisement. However, because the gear is not available for retail—at least not in its exact Olympic form—the brands are playing a long game, focused less on immediate sales and more on cementing their positions at the apex of performance sportswear.
According to Wired, the stakes are particularly high during these global events, where gear can influence public perception of a brand’s technical credibility. Performance apparel worn by elite competitors becomes part of a narrative, equating the brand with excellence, resilience, and cutting-edge innovation.
Beyond visibility, the Olympics also serve as a proving ground for technology that may eventually trickle down into consumer lines. Features like thermoregulation fabrics, improved fit for a greater range of body types, and lighter-weight materials are stress-tested during Olympic competition before finding their way onto store shelves. This cyclical process ensures that the exclusivity of Olympic designs serves a broader purpose in the companies’ development and positioning strategies.
As both Adidas and Nike continue to vie for supremacy across sporting disciplines, the Winter Olympics serve as a high-profile showcase for their ambitions. Though victory on the field remains in the hands of the athletes, the battle for brand supremacy is being waged in stitching, seams, and science—an invisible contest with far-reaching impact within the global sportswear industry.
