The adidas Billie Jean King Shoe: The Story Behind the Blue Suede Original

In 1974, Billie Jean King became the first female athlete to get a signature shoe from adidas. That sentence is worth sitting with, because it took until 1974 for it to be true of any woman in any sport. The shoe is back for 2026, arriving ahead of the US Open, and the story attached to it is one of the better ones in sneaker history. Here is what the shoe is, where it came from, and why the blue suede matters.

What is the adidas Billie Jean King shoe?

It is a low-profile leather and suede tennis shoe built in the era when tennis shoes were actually built for tennis. The 2026 return comes in off-white suede with royal blue Three Stripes and a gold BJK signature embossed around the heel. There is a blue colorway as well. Both keep the proportions of a 1970s court shoe, which means a slim, flat silhouette that sits much closer to the ground than anything sold as a tennis shoe today.

The Battle of the Sexes

In September 1973, King played Bobby Riggs in an exhibition match promoted as the Battle of the Sexes. Riggs was a former Wimbledon champion in his mid-fifties who had spent months telling anyone who would listen that a man could beat any woman on a tennis court. King beat him in straight sets in front of one of the largest television audiences a tennis match has ever drawn.

She wore blue suede adidas that night. That original pair is now preserved by the International Tennis Hall of Fame, which tells you how the sport itself understands the moment. The signature shoe followed in 1974.

Why the blue suede is the detail that matters

Suede was an unusual choice for a performance tennis shoe even then. Leather was the standard because it was easier to clean and held its shape through a match. Suede reads softer, and on a white-dominated tennis court in 1973 a blue suede shoe was a visible decision rather than a neutral one. King has spoken about adidas having the nerve to back her, and the shoe looks like a brand making a point.

The 2026 version flips the proportion, putting suede across the whole upper in off-white and saving the royal blue for the Three Stripes. It reads more wearable day to day than a fully blue shoe while keeping the reference intact.

How it fits into the adidas terrace family

The Billie Jean King sits in the same lineage as the models people already wear constantly. The Samba came out of indoor football in 1950, the Superstar came off a basketball court in 1969, the Gazelle came from training in 1966, and the Handball Spezial came from handball in 1979. Every one of them is a purpose-built sport shoe that outlived its sport and became a lifestyle staple. The BJK is the tennis entry in that family, and it has been the missing one for a long time. If you want the wider map, our guide to old school adidas models walks through each one, and adidas lifestyle shoes covers the terrace icons worth owning.

How to wear a low-profile tennis shoe

Flat court shoes want a leg opening that does not swallow them. Straight-leg denim, cropped trousers, and tailored shorts all work, and the slim profile is the reason a shoe like this looks right with a dress in a way a chunky trainer does not. Off-white is easier to style than stark white because it sits closer to cream and warms up against denim and khaki. Our guide to sneakers with dresses and the broader white sneakers guide both cover this territory.

Taking care of suede

Suede scares people off, and it should not. The rules are simple. Keep it dry, brush it with a suede brush in one direction to lift the nap back up, and use a suede eraser on scuffs instead of water. Never put it in a washing machine and never attack it with soap the way you would a leather upper. A protective spray before the first wear does most of the work. We covered the full method in how to clean sneakers by material, which has a dedicated suede section.

Why this release is landing the way it is

Two things are happening at once. Retro tennis silhouettes have been building for a few seasons as the terrace wave matured and people started looking for the next flat, slim, heritage shape. Separately, King has had a run of renewed public attention, and the return of her shoe ahead of the US Open puts a fifty-year-old story back in front of people who were not alive for it. A shoe with a real reason to exist tends to move differently than a shoe with a marketing story attached after the fact.

Where to buy the adidas Billie Jean King shoe

We carry both 2026 colorways. The cream pair is the off-white suede with royal blue Three Stripes and the gold BJK signature at the heel. The blue pair is the closer nod to what she wore against Riggs. Both are listed in women's sizing, and live sizes are on the cards below.

For everything else in the adidas Originals archive we carry, the adidas Originals collection is the place to start.

Every pair is authentic, authenticated in-house, and shipped the next business day from Portland, Oregon. Verified & Shipped.

— Anthony from West Coast Deals