Twenty-five years after Climacool arrived as a running-shoe technology, adidas used a Shanghai museum-format launch to argue the idea still has runway, recasting it as a cross-category platform tied to 3D manufacturing, lifestyle collaborations and the 2026 FIFA World Cup range.
At Shanghai’s Museum of Art Pudong on Apr. 13, adidas turned an anniversary into a thesis. Twenty-five years after Climacool first entered the market as a breathability story in running footwear, the brand used a museum-style installation — the “Climacool Future Museum,” under the theme “Born to Breathe” — to argue that the technology is less a legacy label than a platform still in motion.
3D-printed footwear and World Cup kit anchor the relaunch
The commercial center of the show was the Climacool Laced, a 3D-printed footwear range with a lattice construction that adidas says enables 360-degree airflow. Alongside it, the brand previewed a 2026 FIFA World Cup home jersey using Climacool+ for thermal management in match conditions. The tournament is scheduled for summer across the US, Canada and Mexico.
Adidas also presented the Climacool+ Singlet, designed with a 3D-embossed surface intended to speed evaporation in high-sweat zones, and Formula 1 (F1) pre-cooling outerwear developed under the platform. A dedicated display highlighted an adidas x Entire Studios collaboration that applies Climacool to the LA-based label’s pared-back silhouettes. A restricted “Secret Room” referenced future concepts and additional 3D-printing applications for elite sport, though adidas did not disclose product details.
Shanghai, a new center of gravity for the German brand
The decision to launch in Shanghai carried its own message. The city’s long past, yet global association with the future, mirrors Climacool itself, which has historically sat below flagship performance franchises such as Adizero. By leaning on 3D production, a museum-of-the-future format and a clear bridge to the 2026 World Cup cycle, the relaunch positions Climacool as an innovative idea that still has plenty to say.
At the event, five Chinese elite athletes joined the opening ceremony alongside student representatives from 12 universities in adidas’s University Sports Community programme: Yu Yiting (swimmer and world championship medallist), Shi Yuhao (long jumper and world championship medallist), Wang Zhen (high jumper), Mo Jiadie (hurdler) and Yang Shuyu (basketball, national team captain). A marathon relay activation used thermal imaging to visualise skin-temperature differences across kit configurations.
