ADIDAS AG

Their core work

Adidas is one of the world's largest sportswear manufacturers, headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Germany. Within H2020, they use their product design, materials engineering, and mass-manufacturing expertise to test circular-economy solutions at industrial scale — turning waste streams into wearable goods. Their contribution to research consortia is practical: prototyping, consumer-facing product validation, and proving that lab-scale recycling chemistry can survive real brand supply chains. They are the industrial endpoint that tells a research team whether their material actually works in a shoe or a T-shirt.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In the first phase (2015-2018), Adidas led Sport Infinity, focused on manufacturing innovation: producing sports goods from waste without adhesives, a footwear- and equipment-centric challenge. By 2020, with New Cotton, the focus shifted from sports products toward textile-system circularity — post-consumer garment waste, chemical recycling, and regenerated fibers. The trajectory moves from "how we make our shoes" to "how the apparel industry closes its material loop," and from coordinator to consortium partner inside a larger materials-science coalition.

Moving deeper into circular-economy textile chemistry and fiber regeneration, which makes them an increasingly relevant brand partner for recycling technology providers seeking large-scale offtake.

How they like to work

Adidas plays both roles credibly — leading an Innovation Action when the topic is sports-product manufacturing, and joining as a partner when the science (chemical recycling) sits outside their core engineering. Across just two projects they worked with 22 distinct partners in 11 countries, suggesting they open doors to wide consortia rather than sticking with a regular circle. For partners, this means access to a global brand willing to commit real product lines to pilot outcomes — but you are one of many collaborators competing for internal attention.

Collaborated with 22 unique partners across 11 countries over two projects, spanning research institutes, chemical companies, and textile producers. Geographic center is European with strong representation from Germany, the Nordics, and the Benelux.

What sets them apart

Very few H2020 participants are globally recognized consumer brands with their own retail footprint — Adidas is one of them. That means they can do something most research partners cannot: take a recycled material from pilot line to shelf under their own logo, giving a project instant market visibility. For any consortium working on circular-economy textiles, sports goods, or sustainable manufacturing, Adidas is a rare combination of industrial scale, design capability, and consumer brand.

Highlights from their portfolio

• Sport Infinity
  Adidas-coordinated Innovation Action with the largest budget share, targeting waste-based, adhesive-free sports goods — an unusually ambitious circular-manufacturing challenge for a consumer brand.
• New Cotton
  Positions Adidas inside the European chemical-recycling-to-regenerated-fiber value chain, alongside specialized materials partners, signaling a shift from product-level to systems-level circularity.