Founded by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight on January 25 1964, as Blue Ribbon Sports, the company became officially Nike, Inc. on May 30 1971. The company was named after the Greek goddess of victory, Nike (Νίκη).

With annual revenue of $22.12 billion, Adidas is the biggest competitor of Nike. The brand actively serves across 55 countries via more than 2500 stores worldwide. Founded in 1924 by Adolf Dassler and Rudolf Dassler, the brand is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe and the second-largest globally.

4 The co-founder of Nike, Phil Knight, and his son Travis Knight, along with the holding companies and trusts they control, own more than 97% of outstanding Class A shares. 5 This allows the Knight family to exercise effective control of Nike even though it is a publicly traded business.

On the tongue in the original pairs from Nike There is the brand's logo. On the inside of the tongue on the tag should be product information, including size and country of manufacture. There is also a 9-digit serial number, which should correspond to the code on the box.