"we make a mean team, my Adidas and me we get around together, rhyme forever" -Run-D.M.C., from their album Raising Hell
However, by 1992, it looked like Adidas was in trouble again. Tapie was unable to pay the interest on the loan and asked Credit Lyonnais to sell Adidas. The bank subsequently converted the outstanding debt into equity for the company, an unusual decision given the then-current French banking practices. According to rumors, the state-owned bank tried to get Tapie out of financial trouble as a personal favor because he was, at the time, the French Minister of Urban Affairs. Tapie later sued the bank because he felt spoiled by the sale. Tapie was eventually declared bankrupt after being embroiled in several lawsuits and a soccer-fixing scandal for which he spent six months out of a sentenced eighteen months in the La Sante prison in Paris.
Adidas then acquired the French Salomon group in 1997. The newly formed group is named adidas-Salomon AG. A new generation of athletes, including basketball superstar Kobe Bryant, tennis player Anna Kournikova and soccer legend David Beckham, entered the future with Adidas at their side This new generation symbolized innovation, technology, performance, and contemporary design, and 1997 began to look like the end of a troubled time for the company, but by the next year, Adidas was once again involved in a lawsuit. This time, Adidas sued the NCAA over their rules for limiting size and number of commercial logos on uniforms and apparel. Adidas eventually withdrew the lawsuit and a compromise was reached when both groups worked to establish guidelines. The next few years were prosperous and fairly quiet. Adidas-Salomon AG opened new headquarters offices in Herzogenaurach, and 2000, Adidas became the official supplier and licensee of the 2000 European Soccer Championship in Holland and Belgium and outfitted the European Champion France. The same year, in Sydney, Adidas was represented in 26 of 28 sports and outfits more than 3,000 athletes. Ian Thorpe, a swimmer from Australia, won three gold medals and sets four world records to become the star of the Sydney Olympics while wearing the Full Body Suit (resembles a wetsuit).
