Adidas Samba trainers have stood the test of time. Even sneakerheads, who stay tapped into the latest buzzy drops, agree.

The runners launched in 1950 and have since become one of Adidas’s all-time bestsellers owing to their affordable price tag, accessibility (no queues for these retro lace-ups) and history.

Having served many an athlete during its early years, the Samba is most famously associated with the 1970s, when the three stripes become an emblem of football terraces.

In the 1990s, the Gallagher brothers nodded to terrace culture during their Oasis heyday, meaning that the Sambas – and Adidas’s other popular shape, the Gazelle – became an emblem of pop culture. In Danny Boyle’s 1996 cult film Trainspotting, lead character Mark Renton, played by Ewan McGregor, wears burgundy Samba Supers.

Modern takes are more fashion than football. Evidence that Adidas Sambas aren’t going anywhere comes courtesy of the It-girls. Footwear fanatic Emily Ratajkowski, who also owns sporty styles from Nike and Reebok, is a Samba fan. Kaia Gerber dresses down her French-girl essentials with the trusty sneakers, while Bella Hadid offsets her bright vintage threads with classic Sambas.

A trainer needs little introduction when it’s received Rihanna’s seal of approval. At moments when her rare sneakers look too splashy, Rih swears by the Adidas original. Take her decision to wear Sambas instead of her go-to Amina Muaddi heels with a Nensi Dojaka LBD last summer. The singer’s partner A$AP Rocky is also a fan.

The latest It-girl to rock the Samba? Katie Holmes, naturally, who was spotted out in New York City this week wearing a retro-inspired print dress by Sézane with a black and white pair of the popular trainers.

As well as the original colourways, the fashion pack swears by styles from London-based designer Grace Wales Bonner, who has released delectable versions in dopamine hues for her seasonal collaborations with Adidas.