AO Member Erik Palmquist

What was not only the inspiration for the design, but your inspiration to design something for and push for American Outlaws?

My team, Creation Center Portland, is a North America–focused (NAM) Sportswear footwear design team within adidas. With the 2026 World Cup taking place right in our backyard, it felt like the perfect opportunity for both our team and the brand to create something special for the region.

The goal was to celebrate American soccer and the World Cup returning to home soil through a NAM-specific lens. Partnering with American Outlaws—the most iconic American soccer supporter group—felt like the perfect lens with which to bring that vision to life. The partnership created an opportunity to design something that not only celebrates this historic event but also pays homage to the beautiful game we all love and the rich heritage of U.S. soccer.

The concept is rooted in three core themes:

• Pride – A celebration of American soccer and its passionate supporter culture.
• Community – Highlighting the camaraderie and connection that sport creates between fans and country.
• Nostalgia – Honoring American soccer history through celebration of an iconic moment.

The primary inspiration comes from the iconic “denim” jersey as it remains one of the most recognizable and iconic pieces of American soccer history. From there, the concept expanded by layering in additional storytelling elements rooted in both American soccer heritage and global soccer culture.

We chose the Barreda Decode model as the canvas for this concept as it carries strong soccer heritage, drawing inspiration from the Samba—a shoe originally designed for soccer played on hard surfaces. Being rooted in soccer culture made it the perfect foundation for the concept.

Initial AO Shoe Designs

Some of the key design elements featured:

• Stars Across the Upper & Sock liner Inspired by the bold, sweeping star pattern featured on the 1994 jersey.
• Tongue Taping Detail Referencing vintage sleeve taping made iconic on long-sleeve soccer jerseys in the 1990s and early 2000s.
• Gold Accents A subtle nod to the World Cup trophy and the glory it represents.
• Vintage-Inspired Materials Featuring crackled leather to evoke a worn, retro football aesthetic.
• White Stripes with Red Edges Inspired by the sleeve cuffs of the iconic denim jersey.
• AO Chant Featuring the “Where you go, we’ll follow” AO chant on the backside of the tongue.
• To complete the story, the shoes come in special packaging that ties the entire concept together.

Talk to us about your design process in designing this shoe for American Outlaws

To be honest, the design process for this project was unique and moved quicker than usual. Projects that are born out of passion are always the most fun to work on, and this was definitely one of those.

The partnership and project direction was an idea I came up with and pitched to my team rather than something that was formally briefed to me. Because of that, I had already developed the creative direction before sharing the concept. The opportunity to merge the soccer heritage–rich brand that we are with the ultra-passionate and loyal American soccer supporter group American Outlaws was incredibly exciting because the two fit together so seamlessly.

Before landing on the denim jersey as the focal point of inspiration, I explored a fair number of other directions. In the end, though, that jersey was simply too iconic and visually striking to ignore. That bold and iconic visual language just felt like it represented and spoke so well to what American Outlaws stands for as a passionate supporter group. Additionally with the World Cup finally returning to the U.S., it felt like the perfect moment to bring that piece of history back into the spotlight and pay homage to it.

Once that became the foundation of the concept, the process shifted to exploring additional AO and soccer-inspired details that could help elevate the design—elements like the tongue taping, gold accents, crackled leather, and an AO chant. The goal was to create a detail-rich direction with storytelling elements that spoke to the history, passion, and love for the game that both adidas and AO share. I think we struck a great balance with the final result.

What was the timing like in the design to approval process. You said, it was rare to design a shoe and get quick approval?

Every project is different, but this one definitely moved forward quicker than usual. I think in part to the direction of the concept and the design itself ended up being so well positioned for what we were looking to do and how well it was positioned alongside what our global team was doing as well; there didn’t end up being many revisions needed before final approvals. In the end I think it will basically have been just around a month or two over a year going from initial concept shares to the official release.

What does it mean to you to have an iconic shoe for fans, and what has it meant to you to be not only be a part of it, but lead it?

It’s wild, to be honest. Soccer is something I’m extremely passionate about and it has always been a huge outlet for me. Having played, coached, and been an avid fan for most of my life, it’s incredibly surreal to be the driving force behind a partnership between adidas and American Outlaws—it truly feels like a dream come true.

American Outlaws has been part of many of the soccer experiences I’ve had growing up, so being able to collaborate with them in this way is very special and feels full circle. It’s incredibly meaningful to be able to share my love and passion for the beautiful game through a project that connects with other fans who feel that same passion.

Tell us about yourself, including your background in soccer and your background in design?

While I currently live in Portland, OR, I was born and raised in Bozeman, MT. I started playing soccer when I was young, but it wasn’t until I began playing club soccer around 11 or 12 that I really started to take the sport seriously and develop a deeper passion for it. From there, I played club soccer, participated in the Olympic Development Program (ODP), and competed in high school soccer until graduating in 2013. My senior year was especially memorable—our team won the Montana state championship, marking the first title for our men’s program in 16 years.

I’m also an avid Manchester United fan, largely thanks to Wayne Rooney and David Beckham. Domestically, I follow the Seattle Sounders. One of my favorite soccer memories was in 2015 when my dad and I attended the Women's World Cup Final in Vancouver, Canada, where the U.S. Women defeated Japan 5–2 to claim their third World Cup.

Creativity was always a big part of my upbringing—both of my parents are creatives—so it was probably inevitable that I would end up somewhere in the design world. Soccer cleats were what first sparked my love for footwear design, with the Adidas Predator Powerswerve being an all-time favorite.

After graduating from Montana State University with a degree in Graphic Design, I moved to Portland to pursue a career in the footwear industry. I attended the Pensole Footwear Design Academy, now known as the Pensole Lewis College of Business & Design located in Detroit, which played a pivotal role in launching my career in the footwear industry. Shout out D’Wayne Edwards and the entire Pensole crew for all the amazing work they did to inspire us and prepare us for the footwear industry.

From there, I spent time at Mizuno working on running footwear doing design and color. I later joined Nike on the Accessories Studio team as a color designer, followed by time with Jordan Brand working on color design for apparel and accessories. That led me to the position I am currently in at adidas as a Footwear Color, Material and Graphic Designer based in our Portland office.

What are more dream designs and projects that you would like to do?

That’s a tough one; there’s a lot of things I’d love to work on. I’d love to get to work on more projects related to soccer, I think that would be super fun. Working directly with teams like Manchester United or any of our global and domestic teams would be awesome experiences. Any time I get to work on a project that I have a personal interest in or connection to is always extra fun and rewarding.

How are you feeling about this world cup and what it means to you?

I’m super excited that we get to experience a World Cup so close to home. Soccer is continuing to grow in the U.S. and I’m hopeful that the World Cup across North America will only help to boost that interest. Not only that but the World Cup is a huge unifying event and having something we can all gather around no matter where you come from, what language you speak, or who you support is a powerful and necessary thing right now. Soccer is a globally understood language that can bring us all together to celebrate, regardless of the outcome of any games.