Nike Changes Iconic 'Just Do It' Slogan to Win Over the Anxious Generation

September 12, 2025

Nike Changes Iconic ‘Just Do It’ Slogan to Win Over the Anxious Generation

For nearly four decades, Nike has been telling people to “Just Do It.” Today, the brand is reintroducing its iconic tagline, flipping it into a question: “Why Do It?”

The answer to that question is a major new campaign issuing the “Just Do It” rallying cry to the next generation. Amid the brand’s turnaround, Nike wants to invite young athletes to write the next chapter of its legacy.

The “Why Do It?” campaign, created by Wieden+Kennedy Portland, kicks off Sept. 4 to coincide with the start of many sports seasons. The ad features athletes from various sports spanning basketball, football, baseball, soccer, tennis, diving, and racing.

The diverse, global group of athletes includes Caitlin Clark, Carlos Alcaraz, Saquon Barkley, LeBron James, Rayssa Leal, and Qinwen Zheng. Each is wrestling with their own purpose and must answer, “Why Do It?”

Tyler, the Creator narrates the spot.

Nike’s fresh take on “Just Do It” reframes greatness as a choice, rather than a given outcome. It speaks to a young generation that is “hesitant to get out there because of this fear of perfectionism,” Nicole Graham, Nike’s executive vice president and chief marketing officer, told ADWEEK.

“As we talk with young athletes, it’s just an absolute pressure cooker of comparison, trying to be perfect, fear of failing, and fear of even trying in many cases,” she said.

The film captures athletes not in the glory of winning, but at the moment they choose to take a risk: kicking a ball, taking a swing, diving off a board.

“The whole idea of ‘Why Do It?’ is about taking that first step and actually doing it,” Graham said. “We wanted to give voice to those doubts, but very clearly give an answer: do it and look what happens.”

A line that moves with culture

Since Nike and Wieden+Kennedy introduced “Just Do It” in 1988, it has become one of the most famous brand slogans of all time.

“Those are three very precious words to us,” Graham said. “Those words have taken on different meanings based on what’s going on in culture.”

The first ad to use the tagline showed 80-year-old runner Walt Stack jogging across the Golden Gate Bridge, demonstrating that sports are for everyone.

1995’s “If You Let Me Play” extended that message to girls and young women by showing how sports could change their lives.

In 2018, the 30th anniversary of “Just Do It,” Nike took a bold stance by featuring former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who had stirred controversy with his protests of racial injustice, in its “Dream Crazy” ad.

“Just Do It” came to be embodied by legendary athletes including Michael Jordan, Serena Williams, Tiger Woods, and Kobe Bryant, who demonstrated that when you show up, anything is possible.

Returning to relevance

Yet in recent years, Nike has faced sluggish sales and declining brand value, while struggling to compete with legacy rivals such as Adidas and upstart brands like On and Hoka that appeal to Gen Z.

“We weren’t as sharp and clear on our values as a company,” Graham said.

Over the last 18 months, Nike has embarked on a marketing transformation to return its brand to relevance.

In November 2023, the company brought back Graham, who’d previously been at Nike for 17 years before starting her own agency, as CMO.

In October 2024, Elliott Hill, another longtime Nike veteran, returned as CEO, replacing John Donahoe.

Earlier this year, after Nike’s full 2025 fiscal year revenue fell 10% year-over-year to $46.3 billion, Hill announced the company would shift its focus from lifestyle marketing to performance wear through a new strategy called “Sport Offense,” which works in tandem with its “Win Now” turnaround plan.

As part of that turnaround, Nike reorganized its business to be segmented by sports, rather than the men’s, women’s, and children’s categories. Its recent marketing has drilled down on specific sports communities, big live sports moments such as the Olympics and Super Bowl, and athlete-focused storytelling.

For example, Nike launched the “Winning Isn’t Comfortable” campaign last year to champion runners. In February, it returned to the Super Bowl after 27 years with “So Win,” a celebration of female athletes.

The sports-focused strategy is driving “real momentum” for the business, Graham said.

“What we have tried to do as a brand is reaffirm we are in love with winning, but winning is relative to whatever you’re trying to do in your life. There’s no straight linear path, and there’s many ways to get there,” Graham said. “This latest campaign [shows] how winning and greatness and potential is all about a choice.”