Who Owns Adidas and Puma
Adidas is a publicly traded company listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the ticker ADS. The largest shareholders include institutional investors such as BlackRock, Vanguard Group, and Norges Bank Investment Management, which hold significant stakes through index funds and active portfolios. The company is controlled by a dual-class share structure that gives the founding family and long-term shareholders enhanced voting power, even though their economic stake is smaller than that of many public investors. You can check the latest ownership breakdown in Adidas annual reports and filings available through the company investor relations portal and the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) Adidas Investor Relations.
Puma is also publicly traded, listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the ticker PUM. Its largest shareholders include institutional asset managers such as BlackRock, Norges Bank Investment Management, and Fidelity Management & Research, which collectively hold large positions in the company. The Puma family, descendants of founder Rudolf Dassler, retains a meaningful stake and voting influence through a family holding structure, but the company is ultimately governed by its board and majority shareholders in the public market. Detailed ownership data and major shareholder disclosures can be found in Puma’s annual reports and the company’s investor relations page Puma Investor Relations.
Founders and Family Influence
Adidas was founded by Adolf “Adi” Dassler in Herzogenaurach, Germany, in 1949, after a split with his brother Rudolf Dassler, who went on to create Puma. The Dassler family and their heirs have historically held a special role in both companies, retaining board seats and significant voting rights through specially structured shares. In Adidas, the family-linked shareholders maintain influence through a combination of direct holdings and governance rights that exceed their economic ownership percentage. This structure is documented in the company’s articles of association and shareholder agreements, which are part of the public record filed with German regulators and stock exchange authorities SEC EDGAR.
Puma was founded by Rudolf Dassler in 1948, and the Dassler family has remained connected to the brand through a family holding company and direct shareholdings. The family’s influence is reflected in board representation and special voting rights, even as institutional investors have grown their stakes over time. The balance of power between the founding family and public shareholders is outlined in Puma’s corporate governance reports and annual general meeting resolutions, which are accessible through the company’s official investor relations website and German stock exchange filings Puma on Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
Corporate Structure and Major Shareholders
Adidas operates as a European public limited company (Aktiengesellschaft) with a supervisory board and a management board, a structure common among large German corporations. The company’s shares are widely held by global asset managers, pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds, with BlackRock and Vanguard consistently among the top institutional holders by voting rights. Adidas also has a free float of shares traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, allowing public investors to buy and sell the stock through international brokerage platforms. The latest ownership figures, including institutional holdings and voting rights, are disclosed in Adidas’ annual report and regulatory filings Forbes: How to Read a Company's Annual Report.
Puma follows a similar corporate structure as a German public limited company, with a supervisory board overseeing the executive management team. Its share register shows a mix