Another weekend of soccer, means another Boot spotting here at The Instep! A huge weekend all over the globe and the stars brought put on all the shiny new toys to play with. Lets take a look at what we saw.
Christine Sinclair (Canada) – Nike Mercurial Superfly
Saturday was the opening day of this year’s Women’s World Cup and as always, the host country has the honors of starting the tournament off. Canada seemed to be struggling to pull off a much needed victory but in the dying embers of the match, Adriana Leon earned a penalty for the Canadians. Christine Sinclair put it away for the 1-0 victory and kicked off the World Cup in a positive fashion for Canada and the Women’s Superfly.
Ivan Rakitic (Barcelona) – adidas ACE 15.1
In a thrilling opening few minutes of the Champions League Final, Barcelona were able to march down field and slot in a goal to take an early lead to control the match. It wasn’t Messi, it wasn’t Neymar, it was none other than Ivan Rakitic! The midfielder known for his creativity, was on the receiving end of a well worked play to put Barca ahead early in the match. The ACE made its first appearance on the feet of players this weekend and it was a great start to the new control silo from adidas.
Luis Suarez (Barcelona) – adidas X 15.1
Adidas had a weekend they must have dreamed only dreamed of. Not only did the ACE have a player find the back of the net, but also Luis Suarez was able to find his goal scoring boots in the brand new adidas X15. The Uruguayan international caused chaos in the late moments of the match by striking to put his club up 2-1. The X had 2 out of the 4 goals in the match as Alvaro Morata scored the lone Juventus goal wearing the new boots.
Paul Pogba (Juventus) – Nike Magista Obra (custom)
Paul Pogba has become a go-to player when it comes to a great boot spot. This weekend did not disappoint as he wore a pair of Magista Obras that he customized himself. I cannot say whether he used NikeID or was just able to talk to Nike and get these boots made. Nonetheless, these predominately white boots with a black swoosh and a black collar also features some lettering and symbols all over the boot. I have no idea what the symbols stand for but hey, why not pull on some custom footwear on the biggest stage? The young Frenchmen has been terrorizing defenses with his marauding runs up field. When it comes to his choice in footwear, there is nothing but positive things to say. Well done Paul, well done.
Alex Morgan (USA) – Nike Hypervenom Phantom II
The face of the Hypervenom line for Nike in the women’s game, Alex Morgan was able to come on during the USA’s 3-1 win over Australia Monday night. Morgan has worn the Phantom line for some time now and wore the men’s versions of the high end boot before Nike introduced the Women’s World Cup Pack just for the ladies. The Blue Lagoon colorway really stands out on pitch as it features a metallic shine to it to help it stand out. The USA are hoping Morgan’s shiny new boots can translate into goals and bring home the World Cup trophy back to the US.
Lionel Messi (Barcelona) – adidas MESSI15.1
There is nothing like pulling on your favorite pair of boots, it feels as if they are made just for you. Well, what if you were given your own entire silo? Messi debuted his brand new Messi 15.1 boots in the Champions League final and was able to help out with a beautiful assist to Suarez to seal the deal for his club. Messi’s new shoes seems to be an evolved version of the F50 series from adidas in which Messi also had his own line of boots as well. An interesting note is that Messi has now switched over to synthetic from the past in which he had always worn customized leather boots.
Neymar (Barcelona) – Nike Hypervenom Phantom II
Finally. We finally got to see the headlining athlete of the agility-based silo sport the new collared Phantoms in Berlin. The new Hypervenom line is for the player like Neymar who are pacy yet bring the attacking side to the game as well. Neymar wore the first generation Phantoms last weekend but it appears he has made the switch officially over to the second generation of the boots. This weekend was not as illustrious as last for the scoring tally for the Phantoms, but having your headlining athlete score one of the 3 goals for Barcelona and win the Champions League is never a bad look for Nike.
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