A bitter sibling rivalry that split a small German town and gave rise to two of the world’s most iconic sports-shoe brands, Adidas and Puma, is set to be dramatized in a new television series.
Announced on Sunday by Hollywood-based production company No Fat Ego, the project will draw on previously unseen family archives to chronicle the dramatic fallout between brothers Adolf “Adi” and Rudolf “Rudi” Dassler, whose feud in the 1940s not only fractured their family but also reshaped the global sportswear industry.
The series, backed by the Dassler family behind Adidas, promises to delve into one of the most compelling corporate rivalries in history.
Adi and Rudi, once partners in a family-owned footwear business, saw their relationship deteriorate during World War II, leading to a permanent schism that divided their hometown of Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, into rival camps. To this day, the town remains marked by the legacy of their conflict, with local loyalties split between Adidas and Puma.
Leading the project is acclaimed scriptwriter Mark Williams, known for his work on Netflix’s hit series Ozark. Speaking to AFP at the Cannes Film Festival, Williams expressed enthusiasm for uncovering the untold layers of the Dassler story.
Everybody knows the brands, but the story behind them is something we don’t really fully know, he said. Williams is currently immersing himself in Dassler family home videos, letters, and memorabilia to craft a narrative that spans multiple generations, blending personal drama with corporate intrigue.
The series is poised to explore sensitive historical territory, particularly the brothers’ activities during the Nazi era. Both Adi and Rudi joined the Nazi Party in the 1930s, a common practice among Germany’s business elite at the time.
However, their wartime paths diverged: Rudi was conscripted to fight and later arrested by Allied forces, while Adi remained in Herzogenaurach, working to sustain the family business.
Their factory was requisitioned by the Nazi regime and repurposed as a munitions plant, a period that raises complex questions about the brothers’ roles and decisions. Williams acknowledged the delicacy of this chapter, noting that the series will carefully navigate the brothers’ wartime conduct, which remains a sensitive issue for the multi-billion-dollar brands they founded.
Described as a “Succession-type drama,” the series will trace the Dassler family dynamics across decades, capturing the personal and professional animosities that fueled the creation of Adidas by Adi and Puma by Rudi.
Niels Juul, head of No Fat Ego and a producer on Martin Scorsese’s recent films, cited this connection as a key inspiration for the project. “The story of their work with Jesse Owens was what first drew me in,” Juul told AFP. “It’s a remarkable piece of history that shows how their innovation intersected with a defining moment of the 20th century.”
No Fat Ego is developing the series with full editorial independence, aiming to preserve creative control before pitching it to streaming platforms. “We want to give Mark the space to tell this story authentically,” Juul said.
The production team’s access to family archives, including personal correspondence and footage, is expected to lend an intimate perspective to the series, offering viewers a rare glimpse into the lives of the Dassler brothers and the empire they built—and broke.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
The series is poised to captivate audiences with its blend of family drama, historical intrigue, and corporate warfare, set against the backdrop of a world in turmoil.
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