House of ZX.
Access. Archive. Advance.
(1984 — Present)

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House of ZX

The dedicated home of the adidas Originals ZX franchise. Here we Access, Archive, and Advance the adidas ZX story. The ZX Archive houses the franchise history, from the 80s running, rave-ready models to the endless collabs with culturally relevant names. Scroll down for more.

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  • ZX 500 side view
    1984
    zx 500
  • ZX 280 side view
    1986
    zx 280
  • ZX 9000S side view
    1989
    zx 9000 s
  • ZX 8000 side view
    2008
    ZX 8000
    JC & MT
  • ZX 700 Boat side view
    2010
    ZX 700 Boat
  • ZX 550 Brooksy - adidas Collector's Project side view
    2013
    zx 550
  • ZX 420 side view
    2014
    ZX 420
  • adidas ZX 10.000C side view
    2019
    ZX 10 000 C
  • ZX 5000 side view
    2020
    zx 5000
  • ZX 8000 Superstar
    2020
    zx 8000
  • ZX 8000 MIG side view
    2026
    zx 8000 mig

Jacques Chassaing and Markus Thaler’s influence on sport and street fashion is undeniable. The pair started at adidas in the 70s; Jacques designed the shoes and was largely responsible for the ZX family, Markus constructed and detailed the trainers by hand. Over decades, their refined, technical approach helped define adidas’ vision for performance footwear, with the ZX series standing as one of their most enduring contributions.

THE FOUNDING

FATHERS

1984

adidas ZX revolutionised running with groundbreaking performance credentials. The three-digit series (1984) enhanced performance for everyday runners, then the four-digit series (1989) introduced pioneering Torsion technology targeting individual runners’ needs. Running, however, was only a small part of the story.

Born

of innovation

Archival adidas print materials showing ZX 8000 branding and design history.
Archival adidas print materials showing ZX 8000 branding and design history.
Archival adidas print materials showing ZX 8000 branding and design history.
Archival adidas print materials showing ZX 8000 branding and design history.
Close-up of a blue Adidas sneaker with yellow stripes and white laces on grass, with text 'SCHUHE FS 89 adidas'.

At a time when football terrace culture was at its peak and hip-hop was growing in popularity across the UK, the adidas ZX three-digit series intersected the two scenes. Be it completing the slicked-back look with loose-fitting leather jackets and tapered jeans, or baggy leather jackets and jumbo corduroy, the adidas ZX fit the fit.

INTERSECTING

SUBCULTURES

1984—

1987

Archive image from the late 1980s showing football fans on a pitch wearing adidas trainers.
Archive image from the late 1980s showing a teenager breakdancing in adidas trainers in a city centre.

UK’s seminal hip-hop rap group London Posse were regularly seen wearing adidas ZX silhouettes. As the unofficial face of the franchise, they were even shot for the cover of their first single in the elevators of Leicester Square tube station wearing adidas ZX 800 silhouettes.

LONDON POSSE

IN ADIDAS ZX 800

Product image of the 2005 adidas ZX 800 sneaker in its original OG colourway.
zx 800

1987

Image of Rodney P from the UK hip-hop group London Posse, who was regularly seen wearing adidas ZX silhouettes.

The “Summer of Love 1988” was a cultural phenomenon in the UK, marked by the explosion of acid house and illegal warehouse raves. Girls started to wear a radical bra-top look, while lads dressed down. The style evolved into 1989 with brightly coloured European labels, cuffed track pants, and argyle socks, and the ZX four-digit series landed at the heart of the zeitgeist.

THE Uk

SUMMER OF LOVE

1988—

1989

Four-digit ZX silhouettes started to be simply known as ‘Torsions’. They were a winner on both an aesthetic and practical level, with bold, eye-catching colour palettes and the very best Torsion technology - perfect for dancing all day and night. From the dancehall culture of London to the warehouse raves in Manchester, Torsions carried the technology to its fullest potential, moving until the early morning.

RAVING In

“TORSIONS”

1989—

1992

In the summers of 1989-90, be it Hackney Downs, Finsbury Park, Clissold Park, Burgess Park, or Brockwell Park, wherever there was a sound system playing ragga tunes in London, the ZX 8000 was there in numbers, moving from noon until 8pm.

ZX 8000

AT ALL-DAYERS

Archival adidas print materials highlighting ZX 8000 Torsion branding and design history.

1989—

1990

Throughout the 1980s, ZX releases were geographically based. If you wanted a certain shoe, you had to travel to get it. By the mid-nineties, with no new releases, ZX suppliers had dried up and the shoes had become extremely difficult to locate. Collectors struggled to get their hands on pairs, and the line gained “grail” status.

“GRAIL

STATUS”

Launched in 2008, the adidas Originals ZX returned with the A-ZX Series, a groundbreaking collaboration project involving 22 global adidas Consortium retailers. Each created a fresh take on ZX sneakers, using premium materials and unique designs to represent a different letter from A–Z, celebrating the heritage of the iconic ZX running shoe line.

ZX RETURNS WITH

ADIDAS CONSORTIUM

Drag
  • Crowded indoor gathering with people engaged in conversation near vertical blinds on a window.
  • Window display showing Adidas and Offspring logos with the text Community Lab.
  • Black backdrop with red neon-style graffiti text reading '#OFFSPRINGHQ FRONTROW' with blurred people in front.
  • Exhibition display of various Adidas ZX Archive sneakers arranged in rows inside a glass case with a lit backdrop featuring Offspring and Adidas logos.
  • Pair of pink and gray Adidas ZX 10,000 C sneakers from 2020 with white laces featuring text, displayed on a white surface with black text and a cartoon face.
  • Graphic interface displaying shoe designs labeled ZX800 and ZX1000 with instructions to choose T-shirt size, select three designs, and use a heat press machine.
  • Young people standing in a purple-lit indoor space, one man in a green Adidas shirt looking at his phone and holding a drink can.
  • Pair of Adidas ZX 8000 sneakers in pastel pink, purple, grey, and blue on white surface with model and year labels.
  • A DJ event with a man in a white 'Human Made' t-shirt raising his hands next to a smiling man holding a microphone, surrounded by an audience.
  • Photo booth strip with four images of a smiling young man and woman posing playfully together.
  • Female DJ wearing headphones and a yellow jacket adjusting controls on a DJ mixer in a dark room with Consortium logo on the wall behind.
  • Person wearing white Adidas sneakers with blue and red accents and white Adidas socks with blue stripes.
  • Leg with Adidas tattoo above the ankle wearing Adidas sneakers with blue and peach accents and matching Adidas socks.
  • Metal storage cases with black Adidas logo and text reading 'The Vinyl Factory 27.07.2024 [Soho, London]' stacked indoors.
  • Four men sitting closely on a black leather couch, holding drinks and smiling in a room with large frosted windows.
  • Storefront with black facade featuring large white Adidas trefoil logo, handshake graphic with 'Consortium' text, and 'Backdoor' logo with a stylized face, protected by metal barriers.
  • Beige and white adidas sneaker placed on a gray surface covered with scattered green and white stickers featuring a stylized face and text.

In 2019, one of the men behind the adidas Originals ZX range, Jacques Chassaing, respectfully and authentically developed a new model to extend the ZX design legacy that he and Markus Thaler had created together. It was the first in the series since the ZX 9000 in the late ’80s; the adidas ZX 10000C offered an answer to what might have followed had designers continued to progress the lineage.

ONE FINAl

EVOLUTION

Graphic featuring detailed shots of the ZX 10,000 C, a shoe created by Jacques Chassaing in 2019.

The second coming of the adidas Originals A-ZX Series launched in 2020. Featuring 26 unique sneaker drops, one for each letter of the alphabet, the series continued to blend archival designs with new collaborations and stories, celebrating the entire ZX lineage's legacy and future.

THE SECOND

A-ZX SERIES

Image of the adidas Originals ZX 1000 C, first released in 1989.
Image of the adidas ZX 7000 HEYTEA Grape Cheezo silhouette from the 2020–21 A-ZX Series.
Image of the adidas ZX 8000 IRAK sneakers from the 2020–21 A-ZX Series.
Image of the adidas ZX 6000 sneakers, representing the “X” release in the 2020–21 A-ZX Series.
Image of the adidas ZX 8000 Atmos sneakers, representing the “A” release in the 2020–21 A-ZX Series.

House of ZX is the dedicated home of the adidas Originals ZX franchise, a space built to celebrate its history and spotlight its future. Access the ZX Archive or find out how adidas are advancing the franchise on The Platform, with content from adidas, OFFSPRING, and the OFFSPRING Community.

HOUSE OF ZX

2026

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Access the archive