It's Gucci Time: The New Age of Designer Luxury Cleats

 

With advances in technology and design, modern day cleats have never been more elaborate, space-aged or expensive for that matter. It’s not that the shoes aren’t worth the price, you certainly get what you pay for when it comes to some of these new enhancements, But it does make us wonder as some cleats straddle the line between high-grade sports equipment and designer luxury fashions.

Take, for one example, the PUMA v.1.10 SL Lightning. A fine boot in its own right with a colorway inspired by running sensation Usain Bolt, but the real eye-catcher is that this boot has genuine Swarovski crystals embedded in the heel. Why? Well, there’s really no practical reason for it at all. The crystals would at best only serve to add additional (albeit negligent) weight to the shoe, which wouldn’t be desirable in a game situation, plus you run the risk of one perhaps popping off during a particularly nasty tackle. But they're sparkly. And it's not just any crystal, it's Swarovski, for what that's worth. It's shiny and baller and cool. And this phenomenon isn’t unique to one boot.

The new boots for Cristiano Ronaldo, the Nike Mercurial Vapor Superfly II FG Elite (whew), is another great example of a boot that toes line between fashion and sport. This unique safari print features a ghosted chevron design and every technological feature Nike could cram in it. And it shows as this boot typically runs for a retail of $300-$400. Those are practically Carrie Bradshaw prices! And bear in mind, all the shoes we’ve mentioned are the absolute tippy-top of the line, worn by the highest paid players in the most competitive games, But still, when you’re getting to that level of cost and design you wonder where else it can go but up.

I suggest that it won’t be long before we begin to see more collaborations between the major sporting good companies and larger, established design houses creating new limited edition luxury cleats specifically for the elite players of the world. Just in the last year we’ve seen PUMA work on just this, creating limited edition shoes with designs by acclaimed contemporary artists such as Kehinde Wiley.

Can’t you just see Cristiano in a pair of Gucci cleats or maybe David Villa (or more appropriately Beckham) in a pair of Manolo Blahnik’s with removable platinum studs? Admit it, the Chanel logo could easily make for a very unique, if not the most practical, stud design. Keep your eyes peeled on both the pitch and the runway in the coming years, because we haven’t seen anything yet.