Horst Dassler
Encyclopedia
Horst Dassler was the son of Adolf "Adi" Dassler
Adolf Dassler
Adolf "Adi" Dassler was the founder of the German sportswear company Adidas....

, who founded Adidas
Adidas
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...

. Horst Dassler started Adidas France in Landersheim, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, competing against his father's Adidas Germany and his uncle's Puma
PUMA AG
Puma SE, officially branded as PUMA, is a major German multinational company that produces high-end athletic shoes, lifestyle footwear and other sportswear. Formed in 1924 as Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik by Adolf and Rudolf Dassler, relationships between the two brothers deteriorated until the two...

. After this event he founded Arena
Arena (swimwear)
Arena is a brand of competitive swimwear created in 1973 at Adidas France, by its president Horst Dassler. Sold by Adidas in 1990, the brand now represents two unrelated product lines....

, a famous brand of swimwear.

Horst Dassler was also responsible, along with Patrick Nally
Patrick Nally
Patrick Nally is a British entrepreneur and specialist consultant, widely acknowledged as the ‘founding father’ of modern sports marketing and a principal pioneer of today’s sports business industry.-Early life:...

, for the founding of "The Club," an exclusive group that uses the money from sports marketing to control international sport.

Horst Dassler is known as the father of sport sponsorship. With the President of FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...

 João Havelange
João Havelange
Jean-Marie Faustin Goedefroid de Havelange , more commonly known as João Havelange , was the 7th President of FIFA, serving from 1974 to 1998. He received the title of Honorary President when leaving office. He succeeded Sir Stanley Rous and was succeeded by Joseph Blatter...

 he saw the potential of harnessing the world wide popularity of football to the interests of big business. Along with Patrick Nally he set about acquiring sponsorships from 'blue chip' companies such as Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...

. His business practices had few limits and David Yallop
David Yallop
David Anthony Yallop is an agnostic British author who writes chiefly about unsolved crimes. In the 1970s he also contributed scripts for a number of BBC comedy shows...

in his book 'How they Stole the Game' says his relationship with Havelange was "Drahtzieher." Dassler was the 'puppetmaster.'
Horst Dassler died on the 9th of April 1987 from complications due to cancer.

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