Dive Brief:
- Adidas’ second quarter revenues increased 13% year over year to 6.7 billion euros (about $7.8 billion at press time), according to a company release Thursday. Apparel drove growth with net sales up 34%, while footwear remained flat and accessories jumped 18%. The brand's Latin America, North America and Greater China regions saw the largest growth for the period.
- The company’s DTC channel net sales increased 24% while wholesale grew more modestly at 6%. Adidas spent more heavily on marketing during the period, with marketing and point-of-sale expenses up 30%, with a focus on the World Cup.
- The company announced CFO Harm Ohlmeyer will exit the company. Former Adidas employee Birgit Kretschmer will succeed Ohlmeyer, joining the executive board effective Sept. 1, per a separate announcement Thursday.
Dive Insight:
Adidas’ World Cup efforts were a bright spot for the retailer in Q2, according to CEO Bjørn Gulden
“Being the CEO of Adidas is a privilege,” Gulden said in a statement. “Being the CEO of Adidas during a World Cup is even better. This World Cup was like a fairy tale for me! I am so proud of what our teams around the world achieved. I do not think we could have scripted it better.”
On a call with analysts Thursday, the chief executive noted that consumers tend to buy more apparel products surrounding stadium events such as the World Cup versus footwear. The company expects footwear to remain flattish in Q3, with growth returning in the fourth quarter.
Increased marketing spend to capitalize on the World Cup did eat into Q2’s operating margin, however, according to Telsey Advisory Group analysts.
“Expectations were very high heading into Adidas' 2Q26 earnings, given what seemed to be strong performance for the brand leading up to and throughout the World Cup,” Telsey Advisory Group analysts led by Cristina Fernández said in a Thursday note. “While 2Q26 sales came in strong … the operating margin came in at 8.5% and missed AC/TAG expectations of 9.5% by a wide margin. This was due to higher SG&A expenses, including a 170-bp increase in marketing expenses.”
But lead apparel analyst at GlobalData, Louise Deglise-Favre, called out Adidas’ more positive operating profit for the first half of the year — which saw a 10.6% increase — despite the higher marketing spend and tariff costs in the U.S.
