** Soccer/Futbol/Football Feet, Kits and Gear - 2012 **

^some people who ordered them through eurosport have already received theirs; my order status still says 'backordered until late march'. hopefully they ship today and i can write something up early next week.

 

just like the orange/light purple CW for the world cup, nike's releasing this 2-tone CW for this summer's euros. each silo gets a unique second colorway. i'll cop the 360 if somehow i can get it without the clunky 360 soleplate (which doesn't seem likely).

 

i got the mercurial vapor viii pro's (509137 800); here's a few of my thoughts. if you have specific questions or want pics of a certain part of the boot, i'll be happy to do that for you. these were made in bosnia; i know that some are made in italy (i think they make the pro in bosnia, FG in italy).

weight: they're light, but you don't get the "holy s***" feeling that you get when you lift up the adizeros. the pro model's soleplate is heavier than the generic FG plate - nike PR says the pro is 216g, FG is 187g. adizero micoach synthetic FG is 164g, leather is 170g.

color: online pics make the boot look more orange-**+ than pink, but they're clearly more pink in person than anything else.

soleplate: hybrid soleplate should perform well under most conditions. it's definitely not restricted only to SG fields, and i think nike should lighten up on marketing these as "SG" boots since that makes them less attractive to a lot of purchasers. cleats come loaded with two 13mm studs on the heel and four 11mm studs on the forefoot (plus the two additional molded bladed studs on the heel, five on the forefoot) - so you have 13 total studs, which is essentially an FG soleplate. nike gives you extra studs (four 15mm, eight 13mm) that should perform well on soggy pitches. i haven't used anything other than adidas x-trx studs for SG boots in a while, so i almost forgot that you have to tighten the studs before use - don't forget to do that lol. the soleplate will of course be more sluggish than the elite tepex carbon fiber plate, but it seems pretty stiff overall. nike exaggerated the thickness of the incredibly narrow arch area to stiffen things up, but you can't really tell how much of the part that juts out is actual fiberglass, or the clear resin exterior coating. it might just be a design gimmick. it's interesting to see nike design a soleplate that is so narrow through the arch - they're relying a lot more on the upper supporting your arch now. this shaves off a lot of weight (relatively speaking).

upper: the tejin is pretty cool, and i hope it gets [limited] use in other nike silos. it's a one-piece upper; there's no stitching anywhere except at the heel and around the cutout for the tongue. the medial part of the instep is rediculously thin. it's the complete opposite of the pass pads on the CTR, and of course the memory foam on the ronaldinho dois. the swoosh might give you some sort of extra grip on a ball, but i doubt it'll be noticeable. i didn't strike any balls with the boots, but i'm guessing that touch and control will be on par with the previous vapors. there is not effective texture anywhere on the boot. the tejin isn't really grippy, so instead the upper relies being so thin and conforming to your foot to provide touch and control. the idea here is clearly to mimic a bare foot.
the tongue is the standard nike soccer tongue with the two cutouts at top - to me, it is the perfect design because i never notice it during use. the lacing system is standard and straight up the middle; the eyelets are punched directly into the upper so you don't have to worry about cloth loops ripping as had been an issue with the original CTR. the laces are a little thin, but not as thin as the project(RED) laces, so they should stay secure for the duration of a half. the 7 eyelets on each side should make this a super comfortable boot with great support.... if your feet are sliding around at all, you bought the wrong size. i think the lacing system is a big reason why people claim that this boot molds to your foot - it's a great system. the heel cup is my biggest concern on the upper - it seems to be the same design and same rubbery material as the T90 III (not the laser, the OG version from 2006-**+). if you're not wearing double socks, i can totally see this causing blisters on your achillies. i disagree with a lot of reviewers that this boot is a half size larger than traditional nike sizing, but plan on wearing double socks.

cushioning: major area of concern. first nike ditched zoom air in all soccer footwear, and now it appears that poron is also doomed. the sockliner is a generic foam with holes punched in it (i'm sure nike will say for for breathability and weight reduction). there is no poron, and there is no extra EVA support through the arch. as much as i think that your foot won't slide around in this boot because of the great stability, i'm almost certain that the sockliner will wear down fairly quickly because of how cheap it is. these feel great out of the box, but i think there will probably be a quick drop in comfort as you break in the boot.

overall: the adizero is still the king of the lightweight silos. i'm happy to see that nike actually made an attempt to innovate this time (as opposed to the VI/VII), but they still have work to do. the design is really plain, so i think the IX's will basically add some designs to the upper. the tejin (it might be 'teijin') is a cool material - not as "suede" as i had reported a few months ago. it feels a lot like the shell of the north face bionic softshell jacket with water-repellent coating. the biggest improvement by far is nike's release of the hybrid soleplate to the general population. it should perform very well under almost all conditions, including third-generation turf. if you're buying the boot, i'd definitely spend the extra $10 on the pro model ($230 vs $220). the weight difference between the two shouldn't be an issue - after all, if you really cared about weight, you'd go with the adizero lol.... if you want the pros, i'd get them quick - they've already vanished (somewhat mysteriously) from both soccer.com and NDC.

EDIT: i spoke with NDC online chat, they said that the pro was really popular and completely sold out. i find it kinda hard to believe that even the oddball sizes are gone, but i think it's a good thing that people appreciate the pro option. hopefully it makes them consider bringing back carbon fiber!

 

i have the shirt (longsleeve, unicef version) and the socks.... i'm pretty sure they've simply never released the shorts to the public. if you ever find them, please please please let me know! i know it's not traditional, but it's definitely my favorite kit out right now.