Amiril Muhaimin
Hotshot David Villa, Golden Boot winner Thomas Muller, and the Uruguay’s hero Diego Forlan and loudmouth Luis Suarez all had something in common: adidas F50 adiZero.
Germany’s prodigy Muller was named the tournament’s top scorer after scoring 5 goals and providing 3 assists. The patriotic Forlan was awarded the Golden Ball trophy for his heroics while his compatriot, neither angel nor demon, Suarez scored critical goals to ensure qualification for his nation.
The concept for the F50 adiZero is simple: Fast to Fast, with ads comparing the boots with the raw power and thrust of a sports car.
Argentina’s Lionel Messi supports the idea of sporting the World’s lightest boots, which weigh a mere 165 grams.
The striker said to adidas, “Wearing the world’s lightest boot will hopefully make me faster, I can barely feel them on my feet.”
Technology has always been part of the beautiful game. Adidas incorporated SprintSkin, a material that was created by using a single layer microfibre Polyurethane (PU) to lessen the weight of the boot and to ensure maximum comfort.
“In football, half a second can be what separates the champions from all the rest. That extra burst of speed means you can anticipate opponents and reach the ball before others. The idea behind the F50 adizero is simple, run light and run fast. adidas has been revolutionising the game of football since the 1920’s and this year, we’re changing the speed of the game again with the F50 adizero,” said Marcus Chew, Senior Brand Manager, adidas South East Asia on 21st May during the launch.
Visually, there’s no missing the boots, especially the chameleon version. That bright, glittery colour struck UrbanWire as being too flashy for typical Singaporeans to don due to the skin contrast. However, the black and yellow model will look good on any regular guy.
F50 Yellow and Black
F50 Black and Yellow
F50 Chameleon
Adidas, however, didn’t suffer the same, cruel fate that rivals Nike experienced where all the players donning Nike’s boots appeared to be jinxed. The lack of a fancy ad from adidas appeared to have paid dividends as half of the semi-finalists were endorsed by the Three Stripes.
The world has been left to lick its own wounds as the World Cup came to an exciting end on July 11. Can the red-hot boot continue their scoring streak once the domestic football leagues resume? Only time will tell.
Photos courtesy of adidas