Adidas holds its 9% to 10% growth range and its chief executive sees possible upside

Adidas keeps its 2026 currency-neutral revenue growth range and says the final figure might come in higher. Its operating profit outlook is now around €2.5 billion, up from around €2.3 billion.

Adidas is keeping its 2026 revenue growth guidance at 9% to 10% in currency-neutral terms, and its chief executive says the final figure might come in higher.

The third quarter gives the range support. Revenue rose 9% to a record €7,252 million, or 7% in currency-neutral terms. Operating profit rose 37% to €1,008 million, the highest quarterly level on record, and gross margin widened 2.5 percentage points to 54.3%. Direct-to-consumer sales grew 17%, according to the company.

Part of the margin gain came from US tariffs. Adidas received the majority of its tariff claims in the quarter and booked a refund of around €200 million, the company says. Its operating profit outlook is now around €2.5 billion, up from around €2.3 billion before.

The fourth quarter also gets a lift from timing. A move to new SAP software in parts of Europe briefly disrupted wholesale deliveries at the end of the third quarter, and those shipments and revenues now fall into the fourth. Adidas expects that shift and higher wholesale orders to produce high-single-digit growth in Europe.

Holding the range while flagging upside keeps the pattern of guidance that is beaten rather than cut. A weaker fourth-quarter result would now stand out as a break from that trend.