Adidas gets World Cup boost

Adidas got a push from the World Cup even though some of the traditional powerhouses it sponsors - including its home country Germany - flamed out early in the tournament.

Teams supported by rival Nike - including winner France and runner-up Croatia - dominated the World Cup.

But the sportswear company still sold record numbers of jerseys linked to the event. That fueled a 10 percent rise in its shares on Thursday, the biggest since March.

The company's shirt sales topped the 8 million sold in connection with the tournament in Brazil four years ago, CEO Kasper Rorsted said on a call with reporters, making good on his June prediction.

That's even though Germany and Adidas-sponsored Spain and Argentina all exited early.

'Most of the jerseys are sold before and during the tournament,” Rorsted said. 'Who is in the final has no commercial impact.”

The company also withstood a shift in off-the-field fashion away from minimalist classic shoes such as the Stan Smith sneaker and toward so-called dad shoes - chunkier versions of designs from the 1980s and 1990s.