To clean adidas Campus 00s, treat the upper as the suede it is: let the shoes dry out, brush the nap one way, erase small marks, and only then give each panel a light, even blot of cleaner. Do the rubber sole separately and let the pair air dry slowly. Don't hold them under a tap and don't put them in the washing machine.
SneakerSalt is not affiliated with adidas. adidas has no care page for the Campus specifically, so this applies its general suede guidance to the shoe.
What you're cleaning
The Campus 00s is a suede upper with a textile lining on a rubber outsole, often gum. A few colourways use leather instead of suede. If the label on yours says leather, it takes a foam pass and a dry wipe like any leather sneaker, and the suede precautions below don't apply.
On a suede pair, nearly the whole upper is suede, so that's where the care goes. adidas's guidance is that suede gets spot cleaned rather than washed because water damages it, and on its Gazelle page adidas warns that harsh soap and running water stiffen suede and stain it. With that much suede in one piece, the biggest risk is a tide line where one patch got wetter than the rest.
How to clean adidas Campus 00s at home
- Give damp pairs a day. Dirt on wet suede smears. On dry suede it brushes out.
- Brush the upper one way. Light strokes that follow the nap, all the same way, so the colour comes back even.
- Erase what's left. A suede eraser on stubborn marks, light pressure, then brush the crumbs away.
- Clean the sole. Foam along the rubber sidewall, a brush through the texture, a dry wipe. Doing it before the suede means no grime gets dragged up onto a freshly cleaned panel.
- Test inside the tongue. A little foam, a blot, and time to dry. Same shade and a soft nap means go ahead.
- Clean one panel at a time. One thin pump per panel, spread out to the seams so the panel is evenly damp. Wait ten seconds, press a dry cloth on, lift. Turn the cloth to a fresh patch each time.
- Dry, then brush. Paper stuffed inside, room temperature, no radiator and no sun. When they're completely dry, brush the nap up again.
Two light rounds on different days do more than one heavy one. Our foam is rated "Good, blot only" on suede, which is honest: it lifts surface grime and doesn't reverse a stain that has set. On the gum sole, the closest row in our table, rubber midsole, is rated Excellent. The technique in full is in our suede and nubuck guide.
Grey and black Campus
Light grey is the colourway that shows everything: dirt in the nap, and every ring where one patch dried before another. On grey pairs, spreading the cleaner from seam to seam isn't optional. Dark grey and black hide dirt but show salt, which dries as a white crust; brush it off while it's still on the surface. On any coloured suede, the inside-the-tongue test comes first. The foam has no bleach and no dyes, and it hasn't lifted dye on anything we've tested.
Water stains, vinegar and grass
- Water stains. A water stain is a ring, not dirt, so the fix is to make the whole panel evenly damp. One light pass of foam from seam to seam usually evens it out, or wipe the panel with a cloth that is damp but wrung out; either way, brush once dry. For stubborn rings, equal parts water and white vinegar on the cloth.
- Vinegar for general marks. The corner of a cloth lightly dampened with white vinegar, dabbed on, left to dry, then brushed. Vinegar can change some dyes, so test it first.
- Grass. Eraser and brush once it's dry. The green pigment acts like dye and may leave a shadow.
- Oil. Cornstarch on the spot for a few hours, then wipe it off with a cloth rather than brushing it in.
Can you wash adidas Campus with water, or in the machine?
Not under running water: that's what adidas warns stiffens suede. A barely damp cloth spread evenly across a whole panel is as wet as a Campus should get. The washing machine is a no as well. adidas's general guide is against machine washing shoes, and suede that has been soaked commonly dries stiff and blotchy. Tumble drying is ruled out by every adidas guide that brings it up.
No suede brush? And keeping them clean
Any soft, clean brush works. Sources disagree about the ideal bristle, so what matters is going lightly and in one direction. A brush comes in our box.
After a muddy day, let them dry and brush them before the dirt settles in. Store them stuffed with paper somewhere dry. Wash the laces separately; our shoelace guide covers how.
Questions people actually ask
Are Campus sneakers washable?
Not in a machine, and not under a tap. They're cleanable by hand: dry brush, eraser, then a light blot spread evenly over each panel.
Can I use Dawn dish soap to clean my suede shoes?
It's not a good fit. adidas warns that harsh soap can stiffen suede, and rinsing soap out of suede means soaking it, which is the thing to avoid. Keep dish soap for leather and rubber, well diluted.
What is the best way to wash suede trainers?
Don't wash them. Spot clean them: brush dry, erase marks, blot lightly and evenly, dry slowly, brush again.
For the light, even blot that suede needs: SneakerSalt Shoe Cleaning Foam, $24, free shipping, with the brush and cloth in the box, and your money back within 30 days if it doesn't clean your Campus.
