Football is about moments. In the last 30 years, football boots have played a huge role in these moments, helping create the memories we are all able to look back on fondly.
Ask anyone about their favourite ever World Cup and it will often be the first one they were old enough to remember. Of course, these memories make icons out of players – immortalising them amongst their own fanbases and etching themselves into the minds of opposition fans like a never-ending bad dream.
But it's not just the players that become immortalised, it's the entire mise-en-scène associated with them; their kits, hairstyles and boots can take on lives of their own, and for me, it has always been about the boots. This obsession means I now own over 100 pairs, but just as the answer to the the best player of all-time debate will usually depend heavily on the age of the person answering, someone’s favourite ever pair of boots will often end up being from their formative years.
The power of tying the memory of iconic players to boots isn't lost on brands either, helping to form the basis of the massive sponsorship industry.
These two factors combine to mean many of our favourites are simply boots our idols wore when we were growing up – and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Iconic adverts have also contributed to the legacy of football boots, so I've stuck my rose-tinted glasses on and tried my best to narrow down my all-time favourite boots.
I know in the headline I promise to reveal my favourite in this article (and I do!) but I have a shortlist of seven to talk you through...
1. Adidas F50+
As a collector of football boots, I am very often asked my favourite ever pair and
the first to spring to mind tends to be the Adidas F50+ ‘Spider’ in the red and white colourway.
With their unique webbed design and lace covering, the model, released in 2005, was one that I loved from the beginning. It didn’t hurt that some of the most exciting players in the game such as Arjen Robben, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Javier Saviola wore them.
Then suddenly came this half red, half white colourway that was so much more striking than any of the others. My preference has always been for boots that stood out, and while it is now the norm for boots to be bright and colourful, in 2005 a pair like this caught the eye so much more.
I always think of John O’Shea chipping Jens Lehmann for the fourth goal in a 4-2 win for Manchester United against Arsenal at Highbury wearing these boots during the height of what is one the great rivalries in English football history. This was the game when Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira famously clashed in the tunnel before it had even begun.
Something about the contrast between the all-black kit United wore against the vibrant red of the boots stuck in my mind back then – and still does even now. 2024 is the 20th anniversary of the F50 model, and I would love it if Adidas released a remake of these so I could buy enough pairs to wear them for the rest of my days.
2. Adidas Predator Mania
The Adidas Predator Mania was one of the first pairs I ever asked my parents to
buy, and is likely something I have in common with many people my age. It is considered by many to be the best football boot of all time, and is near the very
top of my own personal list.
The Mania was the boot worn by many of the best players in the world during the 2002 World Cup, including Raul, Alessandro Del Piero, Luis Figo, Zinedine Zidane and of course, then England captain David Beckham. It is through Beckham that I and many others fell in love with the boot, and is likely the reason for my preference of the champagne colourway over the classic Predator black, white and red.
His winning penalty against Argentina in the group stages of the tournament, exorcising the demons of four years prior, was one of Beckham’s defining moments in an England shirt. When I think back to this I can see so clearly the champagne Manias, with the red tongue pulled as far forward as possible, as the country was sent into raptures.
It is no surprise that this is a boot that Adidas have chosen to release limited remakes of multiple times since. There have been two remakes of the original black, white and red colourway as well as the blue, white and red ‘Japan’ colour, which only makes me think of the last season that Beckham spent at Manchester United in 2002/03, and of course the Champagne Manias have also received the remake treatment.
3. Nike Mercurial Superfly 4
Sometimes brands get it just right. Design, marketing and performance combine and history is made. This can be felt quite quickly but the true test is with time.
Nike’s 2014 range consisting of the Mercurial Superfly 4, Vapor 10, Hypervenom Phantom, Magista Obra and Tiempo Legend 5 has become something of a defining era in boot history despite being relatively recent.
The Nike ‘Winner Stays On’ and ‘Risk Everything/Last Game’ adverts around the release of the boots in advance of the 2014 World Cup tournament are among the best remembered from a brand that’s marketing has often set it apart from competitors.
The boots themselves, particularly the Superfly 4 and Magista Obra, were unlike anything seen before. With fully knitted uppers and high cut collars, the boots looked almost like socks as Nike revolutionised the market forever.
And I have to say that the Superfly 4 is the pair I have loved wearing most, of all those I have tried. Being a David Beckham loyalist, until that point I had only ever bought pairs of Adidas football boots. However, I simply couldn't miss out on this unique design, helping me to stand out from everyone else on the pitch.
Naturally, I opted for the bright pink colourway. I will never forget being shocked at just how light they were; I was almost tempted to double check a couple of times on the journey home to make sure that I wasn’t carrying an empty box.
Contrary to what brands might tell you, a boot will not make you a better player but with these on I felt faster and more skilful (I wasn’t) – almost as if the responsibility or wearing such an eye-catching pair brought out the most eye-catching version of my game. I probably (definitely) wasn’t any different to usual, but that feeling alone illustrates what brands are aiming for with all of the moving parts of a new release.
For me, the next best colourway is the one from the launch, the red pair with a yellow Nike swoosh that was worn at the World Cup in 2014. With these, I can’t help but remember the ‘goal that never was’ from Raheem Sterling in England’s opening game against Italy as the ball struck the side netting but had England fans everywhere celebrating, thinking the ball had flown in and set England on a path to glory.
4. Nike Mercurial Vapor 2
Ronaldo (Brazilian) is the star of undoubtedly the most iconic football boot photos of all time. Stood with a pair of his signature Mercurials from 1998 tied around his neck, the striker watched on as France lifted the World Cup trophy on home soil.
This, the first ever Mercurial Vapor, is perhaps the pinnacle for a collector. However, as someone who was not yet five-years-old during that World Cup, it is another R9 pair that is closest to my heart.
The Mercurial Vapor 2 in the gold colourway that graced the feet of Ronaldo, Didier Drogba, Adriano, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Cristiano Ronaldo are, for me, the best-looking colourway of one of the best-looking models ever released.
I remember going with my brother to our local sports store only to be told they had sold out. Today, a pair of these in good condition can set you back north of £1,000 on the resale market. This was Ronaldo’s pair during his spell at Real Madrid and the immaculate white of the Real kit with the touch of gold was something special.
‘Real’ is Spanish for royal, and there is something poetic about Il Fenomeno wearing his gold crown on his feet while playing for the world’s most regal football team. It was during Euro 2004 where this pair really caught my attention, and this was the pair worn by Angelos Charisteas as he headed the winner in the one of the most unlikely major tournament wins ever – as far as iconic moments go that takes some beating.
5. Nike Mercurial Flyknit Ultra
The newest pair on my list is one that does not even boast an iconic on-pitch moment. They are simply the best-looking pair in mine (or anyone else’s) collection.
The Mercurial Flyknit Ultra was released as a limited edition by Nike in 2017 in anticipation of Nike’s use of their revolutionary flyknit material on future Mercurial generations. It was released in four colourways, but the best of all was the black and gold worn a handful of times by Eden Hazard.
The boot lives perfectly in the intersection between simplicity and flamboyancy that I think sticks it in the upper echelon. It is an uncomplicated silhouette with a fully black upper and Nike swooshes on either side, but the gold colour of the swooshes and the soleplate add to the showmanship that takes these to a level of beauty that I think is unmatched for boots.
They are also wonderfully comfortable, though you will never see these on my feet during a game – they are strictly for the collection. The relatively modern boot phenomenon of wearable soleplates means that after a few wears the paint on the beautiful gold plate would be no more.
6. Adidas Predator Absolute
The Adidas Predator Absolute is a model that holds particular significance for me.
It was the first ever ‘elite’ boot my dad bought for me. I remember getting a
phone call from my brother while he was out with my parents that they were in
Sports Direct and there was a sale so dad wanted to know if I needed a new pair of boots.
He told me that there was a blue pair of Adidas boots that were discounted down, sounding suspiciously like the David Beckham colourway of the Predator Absolute. This was before the time where you could easily send photos, though, so I told him to buy them and then just hoped that it was the pair I wanted it to be.
They arrived home soon after and there they were, just as I had spent the previous hour praying for. Personal anecdotes aside, it is also one of the most iconic models of what is perhaps the most iconic silo of all time and immediately brings back memories of the likes of Juan Riquelme, Kaka and Zinedine Zidane.
And it is through the latter that the significance of the Predator Absolute grew even further for me. The gold pair that Zidane wore during the World Cup in 2006 were truly unique in that they were made only for him and not even available at retail. By then, my interest in boots was such that I made sure I knew exactly what everyone was wearing, so when I saw the gold pair on Zizou’s feet I was shocked that I hadn’t seen them anywhere or being worn by anyone else.
Seeing him wheeling away after his audacious Panenka in the final or dancing around Brazil’s star-studded lineup in the quarter final was only enhanced by doing so in the most special pair of boots at the tournament. In 2022, adidas released a limited-edition remake of this boot at retail and getting myself a pair was a no-brainer and this is now up there with my very favourite pairs in my collection.
It was all the more fitting that they arrived on my birthday. A remake is of course not as special as the original, but seeing as only Zidane himself owns the original I will definitely settle for the remake in this instance.
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7. Nike Hypervenom Phantom
As mentioned, people’s favourite boot depends heavily on their age. Just as those from a certain generation will swear blind that no boot has ever surpassed the Adidas Copa Mundial and some slightly younger may say the same about the Adidas Predator Mania, there is a large group (mainly those who were at their most impressionable during the World Cup in 2014) who will tell you that the best boot of all time is the Nike Hypervenom Phantom.
Indeed, even those who would not go quite that far will tell you that it is at the very least a modern classic and one of the best boots of the last couple of decades. It is also a boot synonymous with Brazilian forward Neymar.
Though he has become something of a divisive figure over the years (I am still very much a fan), his star was rising towards its peak during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil when he had the world at, and a gold pair of Hypervemons on, his feet.
These, along with the orange and black launch pair, are now the most sought-after colourways of the model, and I am very happy to have a pair in my collection. The Brazil World Cup was widely seen as one of the most entertaining in a long time, and these feel like a representation of that.
International football feels better when Brazil are flying and though they fell infamously short in 2014 with defeat to Germany, there were some great moments along the way and they invariably involved Neymar in both sparkling gold form and sparkling gold football boots.
Honourable mentions
Thinking back and looking through the pairs that I have, there are so many more that I love and could have included. I almost feel guilty for leaving some of them out. The Umbro Speciali, the Puma King (my first ever pair) and many of the great Adidas Predators all spring to mind.
Football boot collecting, whether casual or dedicated, seems to be steadily rising, and brands have reacted to this with an increasing number of limited-edition pairs and remakes to both feed and capitalise on the nostalgia that births a lot of these collections.
Part of the beauty of football is whether or not you take the step to actually collect these boots or kits or whatever it is that is connected to these moments, these are memories we all have in common, regardless of which side of them we are on.
It feels impossible to look at a pair of yellow Total 90 Lasers and not think of Wayne Rooney or Fernando Torres just as looking at an away England kit from 1966 leads us instantly to a photo of Bobby Moore lifting the Jules Rimet trophy even if we were not yet born when it was taken.
Collecting these moments in time across eras is a beautiful part of what it means to be a fan of this game.
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