When Elon Musk announced that Tesla would accept Bitcoin as payment for its cars, it proved to be a short-lived initiative. But the EV company's move opened a door for Adidas' plans to use blockchain, said the sportswear company's Web3 lead Erika Wykes-Sneyd.

One thing Adidas was keen to avoid was simply offering crypto payment options for its products. "I think those of us that knew were like, 'Well, I don't think just accepting crypto is what it means to get in this space,'" said Wykes-Sneyd.

Instead, the sportswear giant embarked on an ambitious program of Web3 initiatives that included buying its own Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT, teaming up with NFT collector gmoney on a multimillion-dollar NFT drop and partnering with crypto exchange Coinbase and metaverse platform The Sandbox. The company even showcased its Bored Ape avatar, Indigo Herz, in its World Cup trailer.