Uploaded November 2023 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
“You can choose your friends, but you can’t choose your family.” Anyone who’s ever had a difficult relationship with a sibling can attest to the truthfulness of this statement. Even the closest of brothers have moments that make them wish they’d been born an only child, after all.
The Dassler Brothers were, to wit, NOT the closest of siblings. They hated each other so much that they refused to speak to each other. But what makes the feud between the Dassler brothers so unique was that it spilled over from their personal into their professional lives. They split the family shoe making business off into two separate companies that would come to dominate the athleticwear business in a way no one ever had before. The success of their respective companies can, at least in part, be credited to the rivalry between the two brothers, as they pushed their employees to outdo each other as a worldwide audience watched.
The feud split apart not only the Dassler family, but their entire hometown as well, as every family was forced to pick a side. The two companies are still household names today, each earning billions annually in sales, still competing against each other for market share, forever locked together by the personal rivalry of their founders. Two men, two brothers who, though they were unable to choose their family, surely wished that they could have.
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Sneaker Wars by Barbara Smit, Harper-Collins 2009
“You can choose your friends, but you can’t choose your family.” Anyone who’s ever had a difficult relationship with a sibling can attest to the truthfulness of this statement. Even the closest of brothers have moments that make them wish they’d been born an only child, after all.
The Dassler Brothers were, to wit, NOT the closest of siblings. They hated each other so much that they refused to speak to each other. But what makes the feud between the Dassler brothers so unique was that it spilled over from their personal into their professional lives. They split the family shoe making business off into two separate companies that would come to dominate the athleticwear business in a way no one ever had before. The success of their respective companies can, at least in part, be credited to the rivalry between the two brothers, as they pushed their employees to outdo each other as a worldwide audience watched.
The feud split apart not only the Dassler family, but their entire hometown as well, as every family was forced to pick a side. The two companies are still household names today, each earning billions annually in sales, still competing against each other for market share, forever locked together by the personal rivalry of their founders. Two men, two brothers who, though they were unable to choose their family, surely wished that they could have.
→ Subscribe for new videos at least twice a week!
youtube.com/c/biographics?sub_confirmation=1
Love content? Check out Simon's other YouTube Channels:
Geographics: youtube.com/channel/UCHKRfxkMTqiiv4pF99qGKIw
TopTenz: youtube.com/user/toptenznet
Karl's Socials:
Fact Fiend: youtube.com @FactFiend
Wiki Weekends: youtube.com @wikiweekends
Untitled Side Channel: youtube.com @untitledsidechannel
Twitter: twitter.com/KarlSmallwood
Further Reading:
Sneaker Wars by Barbara Smit, Harper-Collins 2009
