It also warns that projections for the next quarter will be more severe as the coronavirus crisis continues globally.

There was a 97 per cent drop in earnings in the first quarter, down to €20 million (£17.3 million/$21.9 million) with revenue decreasing 19 per cent.

Of that, Adidas had a drop of 20 per cent, while the other owned Adidas AG company, Reebok, suffered a slide of 12 per cent.

However, as expected, online sales increased by 35 per cent which Adidas described as "the only channel that has remained fully operational in most parts of the world", according to Footwear News.

Adidas chief executive Kasper Rørsted spoke of the company's work in the community among the financial uncertainties.

Rørsted said: "Our results for the first quarter speak to the serious challenges that the global outbreak of the coronavirus poses even for healthy companies.

"I am proud of how our Adidas family has been working together to support both our company and our communities.

"At the moment, we are focused on managing the current challenges and doubling down on the recovery in China and the opportunities we see in e-commerce."

To date, there have been more than 3.25 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 worldwide, resulting in the deaths of over 230,000 people. 

Rørsted has said he expects the decline in the second quarter to be "more pronounced" and expects sales for 2020 to be 40 per cent lower than the previous year period. 

However Rorsted says he is not willing to predict the rest of the year's sales at this stage due to the current situation.