PUMA V1.11 SL – DRESDEN BLUE/WHITE/LIME PUNCH
Along with the standard synthetic and K leather versions, Puma have released the V1.11 SL in their striking new Dresden Blue/Lime/White colourway.
Few pros wear the V1.11 SL despite being one of the lightest boots on the market. A super-soft and ultra-thin microfiber synthetic upper features unique padded zones for improved ball contact. The V1.11SL’s redesigned upper provides great comfort and ball feel as well more protection than the V1.10 SL.
The unique outsole’s stability, durability and support is enhanced by the revolutionary engineered Thermoplastic outsole. The Pebax material offers outstanding mechanical, physical and chemical properties, by bridging the gap between thermoplastics and rubbers. Carbon fibre in the outsole adds mid-foot stability while the external heel counter is shaped and bonded to the upper adds strength and stability.
The new Dresden Blue/Lime/White colourway Puma V1.11 SL is now available for order however will not be available in South Africa.
PUMA POWERCAT 1.12 – BLACK/SHADOW/WHITE/LIME
PUMA has launched the new Black/Shadow/White/Lime colourway of the PowerCat 1.12, a performance boot featuring the most advanced PUMA technologies. The new PowerCat 1.12 colourway was worn by Michael Carrick and Tomas Rosicky over the weekend and will be worn by fellow PUMA stars including Cesc Fabregas, Phil Jones and Nigel de Jong.
Designed for power players, the boot is a perfect combination of engineering and comfort, giving players the confidence to perform on pitch. The PowerCat 1.12 features the new PUMA 3D DUO Power Shooting Technology, applied to the kicking area on the inside of the boot.
Made from an innovative thermoplastic material with two different degrees of hardness, the newly created PUMA 3D PST DUO technology enables improved grip on the ball through its exposed elements, and instead of absorbing the energy it increases the kicking power of the player. The kicking area employs a soft K-Leather while the lightweight microfiber material in the lateral quarter supports the midfoot and helps to keep the weight of the boot to a minimum.
The PUMA PowerLast, an evolution of the PUMA AptoLast, follows the foot’s natural contours, providing a glove like fit allowing the upper to mould to players fit. Coupled with the stable yet flexible outsole, the PowerCat 1.12 gives the best possible comfort. Optimal support, stability and protection are provided by the asymmetrical external TPU-injected heel counter.
The new Black/Shadow/White/Lime PowerCat 1.12 boots will retail for R1 999 in South Africa and will be in stores from February 2012.
PUMA KING FINALE SL – WHITE/NAVY/TEAM ORANGE
Having already made their on field debut, Puma have now officially unveiled the King Finale SL. Described by Thierry Henry as the best boots he’s ever worn, the new King Finale SL have created a massive amount of hype and first impressions seem to imply they will deliver.
Weighing 225g the King SL is not the lightest leather boot (compared to the AdiPure 11Pro) on the market however do beat out the likes of Nike’s Tiempo IV Elite. The SL is based on the King Finale but features a thin premium K-Leather upper which is very lightweight and shapes perfectly to the foot for the same glove-like fit and ball feel you’d expect from the King Finale.
The heel counter has been stripped to reduce weight while the TPU injected outsole from the King Finale remains. The iconic fold over tongue has bee redesigned and the form-stripe is now an integrated feature of the light K-Leather upper instead of being another overlay of stitched material.
Thierry Henry and fellow Gunner Mikel Arteta have already worn the new Puma King Finale SL in this launch White/Navy/Team Orange colourway which is available now to order.
DARREN BENT’S BESPOKE UMBRO SPECIALI BOOTS
Darren Bent is yet to change to the new Umbro Speciali 3 and looks as though he will wait a bit longer after Umbro presented him with a bespoke pair of Speciali R boots. Aston Villa travel to the Emirates on Sunday to face Arsenal in the FA Cup 4th round. The England striker has scored 99 Premier League goals and to celebrate Umbro have produced a limited number of yellow/purple boots.
Ahead of the game, Darren Bent spoke about his boots and closing in on 100 Premier League goals.
You’ll be debuting these boots in a big game at the weekend, are you looking forward to the game at Arsenal?
‘Yeah, it should be a good game. I wasn’t involved in the game earlier this season, but I was at the last one down at the Emirates and it was a good game. Being an Arsenal fan as well, it’s always nice to play against them, but hopefully we’ll beat them!
The FA Cup is a special competition, and if you can beat Arsenal on the way, then it’d be even better. Beating Arsenal wouldn’t make it any easier though – that’s the magic of the FA Cup, that you can play any team and everyone just grows in stature. It doesn’t matter what division you’re in, anyone can beat anyone, it’s just about producing the goods on the day. If you don’t do that, then you’re out!
Winning the FA Cup would be a massive thing for Villa, we’re a massive, massive club and they should be winning trophies. If we could win the FA Cup, which is such a big prize, it’d be great for all the fans, and there’s no reason why we couldn’t do it.’
These special boots are a bit colourful, is that what you were looking for?
‘Yeah! I’ve always wanted some boots that are a bit more out-there, and Umbro have certainly produced the goods with these ones. I’m looking forward to wearing them! Umbro boots have always been really comfortable, they’re probably the most comfortable boots out there, and then they’ve done this yellow and purple colourway just for me, and they look fantastic, so I’m really pleased. With the colours, I just liked the look of them, I liked how out-there they are. You can’t sit on the fence with these ones.
The boots have also come at a great time as you’re close to getting 100 Premier League goals. Were you aware that you’re close to joining a very special group of players?
‘Yeah, it’s always been an aim of mine, to get in the Premier League 100 club, it takes some doing and there’s some absolutely class players in there. Alan Shearer, Robbie Fowler, Thierry Henry, these are all people that I regard as the best to ever play in the league. I’m on 99 at the moment, so I’m just looking for one more, hopefully I’ll get one off my shin or anything, just so I can be part of that. Once I get in there I’ll just be looking to get more as well. If I could get to 150 and beyond I’d be so happy.’
Obviously if you keep scoring goals, you could be part of the England squad at the Euros this summer. Have you thought about that yet at all?
‘I’m just concentrating on the cup and the league to be honest, because I’ve been in a similar position before, and all I can do is focus on what I do and play as well as I can for Villa, and if I got to go to the Euros with England I’d be delighted.’
Umbro have done some special boots for you before, when you were the first player to have their Twitter name on their boots. How does it feel to be a trendsetter?
‘Nice! As long as people know that I was the first person to do it that’s cool, it’s all good fun. Trendsetter, I like that!’
PUMA V1.11 – DRESDEN BLUE/WHITE/LIME PUNCH
Tonight sees Liverpool host Premier League log leaders Manchester City in the Carling Cup holding a 1-0 lead. It is the perfect opportunity for City star Sergio Aguero to show off the new Dresden Blue/White/Lime Punch Puma V1.11 colourway.
We got to see a very quick glimpse at the new colourway over the weekend as South African skipper Steven Pienaar gave the new colourway a Premier League debut. This new colourway will be the first time Aguero has worn anything other the launch Green/Navy colourway since signing with the German giants.
The V1.11 is a genuine competitor in the speed boot market. The upper is stitched rather than glued to the soleplate using special UNI technology which provides the perfect fit by replicating the unique PUMA Aptolast. Super soft premium lightweight microfiber upper material, which features central lacing, ensure a snug fit and provides a smooth kicking area, superb ball touch and a unique look. A carbon fiber composite in the forefoot helps provide optimal pressure distribution, reactivity and flexibility.
Greater playing stability is provided through an external heel counter and a Pebax frame that provides support to the outsole. The midfoot area is reinforced with a TPU composite which secures further stability and helps to avoid midfoot bending. This increased stability also enables an optimal traction as well as manoeuvrability, provided through the pointed stud configuration featured on this new boot.
We can look forward to seeing the new Dresden Blue/White/Lime Punch colourway – which will be available in the SL version as well - tonight after Aguero was spotted training in them with the rest of his Manchester City teammates this afternoon.
ADIDAS PREDATOR ADIPOWER – SLIME/NAVY/WHITE
Adidas’ AdiPower Predator has been a resounding success since its launch last year. Now Adidas unveil their latest (10th including two David Beckham’s colourways) colour combination – Slime/Navy/White.
The AdiPower Predator features a Taurus calf leather upper with a new re-engineered silicon rubber Predator Element is split into two zones. The first zone is an aggressive, structured surface which integrates the Adidas stripes is the ‘Power Zone’. The 3D fins give rebound upon ball impact, generating additional striking power from the boot. The second ‘Swerve Zone’ features a hexagonal pattern. The even and soft surface provides a longer contact time with the ball, resulting in higher friction and ultimately higher swerve.
Adidas’ groundbreaking SprintFrame outsole features a redesigned Predator PowerSpine from the Predator X. This allows additional energy transfer directly from the foot into the ball by preventing the foot from over bending while still allowing for comfortable running movements thanks to the flex grooves which keep the element highly flexible in the right direction.
Adidas like to use new colours across their silos. We saw their ‘Warning’ and ‘Electricity’ colours being used extensively and it seems that ‘Slime’ – making its Predator debut – has joined the bright colour revolution.
ADIDAS ADIZERO MICOACH – WHITE/BLACK/RED
Adidas have a knack of releasing great looking alternate colourways which deserve to be seen on pitches around the world but are scheduled to receive no official on field support. And we think they have done it again with the release of this White/Black/Red AdiZero MiCoach colourway.
The adiZero F50 boot includes a built in cavity within the outsole which houses the revolutionary miCoach Sensor (Data Capture Chip) -a technology which enables both professional and amateur footballers to analyze their personal speed, distance and work rate during a game.
The adiZero F50 miCoach features technologies such as Adidas’ Sprintweb which provides stability during high speed movements. The lightweight Sprintskin upper is a revolutionary single layer synthetic which provides incredible ball-feeling and reduced weight. Adidas groundbreaking Sprintframe uses geometrics and new stud construction to offer the perfect balance between lightweight and stability. All of this while still weighing just 175 grams.
The miCoach Sensor captures 360 degrees movement and measures key performance metrics including speed, average speed (recorded every second), maximum speed (recorded every five seconds), number of sprints, distance covered, distance at high intensity levels as well as steps and stride rates. The on-board memory stores up to seven hours of all measurements during your game or training and then wirelessly transmits the on pitch performance data to your tablet, PC or MAC.
LEO MESSI BALLON D’OR ADIDAS ADIZERO MICOACH BOOTS
Having celebrated Leo Messi’s third consecutive Ballon d’Or Player of the Year award with short film, Adidas have now commissioned a stunning pair of Gold/White/Black F50 adiZero MiCoach football boots to mark the occasion.
The Argentina and Barcelona star has won La Liga title, the Champions League and the FIFA Club World Cup with Barcelona over the past few months and added more personal accolades on Monday night at the Ballon d’Or ceremony.
Messi’s new ‘M’ shield logo features on the outstep with each of his Ballon D’or wins within each of the classic Adidas stripes. ‘World Player of the Year’ and ‘gracias a todos’ – ‘Thanks to All’ are inscribed on the insteps.
Messi is expected to wear these bespoke, once-off, boots this weeknd. The boots feature all the usually Leather AdiZero MiCoach technology but have a unique Gold/White/Black colourway.
ADIDAS ADIZERO MICOACH – BLACK/ELECTRICTY/CORE ENERGY
Along with new Prime Blue/Core Energy/White colourway, Adidas have unveiled this Black/Electricity/Core Energy colourway. Set to be worn by the likes of Kalou, Podolski, Robben and Benzema, this alternate colourway is sure to catch the eye on the pitch.
The arrival of the AdiZero MiCoach football boots was a game changer as the miCoach technology enabled both professional and amateur footballers to analyse their personal speed, distance and work rate during a game.
The adiZero F50 boot includes a built in cavity within the outsole which houses the revolutionary miCoach Sensor (Data Capture Chip). The miCoach Sensor captures 360 degrees movement and measures key performance metrics including speed, average speed (recorded every second), maximum speed (recorded every five seconds), number of sprints, distance covered, distance at high intensity levels as well as steps and stride rates. The on-board memory stores up to seven hours of all measurements during your game or training and then wirelessly transmits the on pitch performance data to your tablet, PC or MAC.
The adiZero F50 miCoach features technologies such as Adidas’ Sprintweb which provides stability during high speed movements. The lightweight Sprintskin upper is a revolutionary single layer synthetic which provides incredible ball-feeling and reduced weight. Adidas groundbreaking Sprintframe uses geometrics and new stud construction to offer the perfect balance between lightweight and stability.
The new Black/Electricity/Core Energy will be available to pre-order towards the end of the month and is only available in synthetic and not a leather version. Despite this boot a support colourway to the new Prime Blue/Core Energy/White we expect these to be a huge hit with boot fans.
ADIDAS ADIPURE 11PRO SL – BLACK/WHITE/ENERGY
The Adidas AdiPure 11Pro boot haven’t even hit pitches yet but have already generated a huge amount of buzz. Following on from their unveiling Adidas have unveiled the AdiPure 11Pro SL. The adidas adiPure SL released last year became an instant fan favorite despite their lack of on field support and we expect a similar story with the new 11Pro SL.
Combining super lightweight innovation with a classic feel, the new adiPure 11Pro SL weigh a mere 180g – 60g lighter than the standard 11Pro. The 11Pro SL’s upper combines a super soft K-leather (the standard 11 Pro features a Taurus leather upper) with adidas’ revolutionary single layer Sprintskin synthetic.
The outsole on the 11Pro SL is the same a Traxion SprintFrame with triangular traxion stud configuration as on the AdiZero compared to the conical stud shapes found on the standard issues. The lightweight sole also integrates adidas’ miCoach technology through the cavity in the outsole. An anatomically moulded EVA insole and suede synthetic leather lining provide additional comfort.
Available from February 1st, the Black/White/Core Energy AdiPure 11Pro SL will be available to pre-order from January 13th.