adidas and DICK’S are kicking off “New Year, New You,” a youth-sports push that trades highlight reels for headspace. Conceived by 180 with adidas North America, the work reframes greatness as something you cultivate, not something only pros possess, and pairs rising stars with everyday players to make the point stick.
The backdrop is stark: roughly 70% of kids quit organized sports by 13. This campaign aims to keep them in the game, swapping the usual pedestal shots for mirrored moments of self-belief. In Phase One, Trinity Rodman steps into a stylized DICK’S locker room where her “reflection” moves with her, less hero worship, more inner spark. Watch below:
The thread continues with blue-chip football recruit Jeremiah Smith, whose mirror image underscores connection over idolization: the athlete you’re chasing may already be in you. Watch below:
Phase Two shifts to pure performance with Anthony Edwards. In a gym vignette, a young hooper laces up the new AE 2s and is reflected as Ant—marking the first commercial spotlight for Edwards’ AE 2 and tying confidence directly to product without losing the campaign’s grounded vibe.
Targeting Gen Z athletes who treat back-to-school like a style season, “New Year, New You” blends Originals staples with modern silhouettes and presents DICK’S in aspirational, youth-culture spaces rather than traditional retail scenes. It’s built for social-first storytelling and designed to run well beyond the first whistle.
Strategically, the push also signals adidas’ intensified U.S. focus ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2028 LA Olympics. By placing pros side-by-side with young athletes, in the same frames, the same rooms, the same gear, adidas and DICK’S aren’t just selling product; they’re selling permission. Believe first, perform next.
The star power is there, Rodman, Edwards, Smith, but the hero is the kid who sees themselves in the mirror and decides to keep playing.
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