King Henry VIII’s football boots were listed within the Great Wardrobe of 1526, a shopping set of the day. These were created by his personal shoemaker Cornelius Johnson in 1525, at a high price of 4 shillings, the same of £100 in today’s money. Little is famous about them, as there’s no surviving example, however the royal football boots are known to own been made of strong leather, ankle high and heavier compared to normal shoe of the day.
Football Boots – The 1800’s
Moving forward 300 years saw football developing and gaining popularity throughout Britain, but still remaining as an unstructured and informal pastime, with teams representing local factories and villages in a burgeoning industrial nation. Players dons their hard, leather work boots, of long laced and steel toe-capped as the initial football boots. These football boots would also have metal studs or tacks hammered into them to improve ground grip and stability.
As laws become built-into the game in the late 1800’s, so saw the initial shift in football boots to a slipper (or soccus) style shoe, with players of the exact same team just starting to wear the exact same boots for the initial time. Laws also allowed for studs, which must be rounded. These leather studs, also known as cleats, were hammered into early football boots, which for the very first time moved from the sooner favoured work boots. These football boots weighed 500g and were made of thick, hard leather increasing the ankle for increased protection. The football boots would double in weight when wet and had six studs in the sole. The football boot had arrived…
Football Boots – The 1900’s to 1940’s
Football boot styles remained relatively constant throughout the 1900’s as much as the conclusion of the second world war. Probably the most significant events in the football boot world in the initial the main twentieth century were the forming of several football boot producers that are still making football boots today, including Gola (1905), Valsport (1920) and Danish football boot maker Hummel (1923).
Over in Germany, Dassler brothers Adolf and Rudolf formed the Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik (Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory) in Herzogenaurach in 1924 and began producing football boots in 1925 which had 6 or 7 replaceable, nailed studs, which could be changed according to the weather conditions of play.
Football Boots – The 1940’s to 1960’s
Football boot styles shifted significantly after the conclusion of the second world war, as air travel became cheaper and more international fixtures were played. This saw the lighter, more flexible football boot being worn by the South Americans being thrust onto the entire world stage, and their ball skills and technical ability amazed all the ones that watched them. Football boot production shifted to producing a lighter football boot with the give attention to kicking and controlling the ball rather than producing an item of protective footwear.
1948 saw the forming of the Adidas company by Adolf (Adi) Dassler after having a falling out with his brother which was to make the cornerstone of football boot maker rivalry for the preceding years as much as today. Brother Rudolf founded the beginnings of the Puma company in 1948, quickly producing the Puma Atom football boot. This resulted in interchangeable screw in studs made of plastic or rubber for the very first time, reputedly by Puma in early 1950’s however the honour can be claimed by Adidas (Read the Story on Footy-Boots). Football boots of the time were still on the ankle, but were now being made of a mixture of synthetic materials and leather, producing and even lighter shoe for the players of the afternoon to produce their skills with.
Football Boots – The 1960’s
The technological developments of the sixties bought a momentous step-change in design which saw the lower cut design introduced for the very first time in football history. This change allowed players to maneuver faster and saw famous brands Pele wearing Puma football boots in the 1962 World Cup Finals. Adidas, though, quickly emerged as the market leader, a situation it claims until the current day. In the World Cup Finals of 1966, an astonishing 75% of players wore the Adidas football boot.
The seventies began with the iconic 1970 World Cup Finals which saw a sublime Brazilian team lift the trophy with Pele again at the helm, now wearing the Puma King football boot. The decade itself will soon be remembered for the method by which football boot sponsorship shot to popularity, where players were being paid to wear only 1 brand. In terms of design and style, technological advancements produced lighter boots, and many different colours, including for the very first time, the all-white football boot.
In 1979, Adidas produced the world’s best selling football boot the Copa Mundial, built of kangaroo leather and built for speed and versatility. Although Adidas remained dominant, various other football boot makers joined the fray including Italian football boot maker Diadora (1977).
Football Boots – The 1980’s
The best development of recent times in the style and technology of football boots was developed in the eighties by former player Craig Johnston, who created the Predator football boot, which was eventually released by Adidas in the 1990’s. Johnston designed the Predator to supply greater traction between football boot and the ball, and football boot and the ground. The style allowed for greater surface areas in the future into experience of the ball when being hit by the football boot, with a series of power and swerve zones within the striking area allowing the ball player to produce greater power and swerve when hitting the “sweet spots” ;.The eighties also saw football boots for the very first time being created by English company Umbro (1985), Italy’s Lotto and Spain’s Kelme (1982).
Football Boots – 1990’s
1994 saw Adidas release the Craig Johnston designed Predator using its revolutionary design, styling and technology making it an instantaneous and lasting success. https://zlomzy.pl/pl/13_sport/21442_-wigry-wycofuja-sie-z-ii-ligi-co-sie-dzieje-na-podlasiu.html The Predator by now featured polymer extrusion technologies and materials enabling an even more flexible sole along with the conventional studs being replaced by a bladed design covering the only real, giving an even more stable base for the player. In 1995 Adidas released their bladed outsole traxion technology which are tapered shaped blades. Puma hit back in 1996 with a foam-free midsole football boot, known as Puma Cell Technology, to which Adidas responded again, now with wedge shaped studs in the exact same year. The nineties saw new football boot producers Mizuno release their Mizuno Wave in 1997. Other new football boots originated in Reebok (1992) and Uhlsport (1993) with other individuals also joining the rising, lucrative and competitive market place. Most significantly the nineties saw the entry of Nike, the world’s biggest sportswear producer, immediately making an effect using its Nike Mercurial soccer boot (1998), weighing in at just 200g.
Football Boots – 2000+
As technology advanced still further, the application of the brand new research and developments were noticed in the years into the brand new millennium right as much as the current day and it’s resulted in a reinforcement of the market positions of the big three football boot makers and sellers, Puma, Nike and Adidas (incorporating Reebok since 2006). Fortunately, there still remains room in the market area for small producer that doesn’t have the big money endorsement contracts at its disposal, such as for instance Mizuno, Diadora, Lotto, Hummel and Nomis.
Recent developments since 2000 have seen the Nomis Wet control technology producing a sticky boot (2002), the Craig Johnston Pig Boot (2003), shark technology by Kelme (2006) and the exceptional design of the Lotto Zhero Gravity laceless football boots (2006) all of which underpin the successes these smaller makers can perform by producing specialised and technologically advanced football boots that offer a distinct differentiation from the produced in higher quantities products of the big three. Laser technology in addition has helped to make the world’s first fully customised football by Prior 2 Lever, that will be probably the most exciting and innovative of the recent developments.
Since the debate rages with regards the lack of protection given by modern football boots, and the repercussion when it comes to player injuries, there seems little to suggest that the major manufacturers are going to give up their pursuit of the lightest football boot for an even more protective one. The proliferation of big money sponsorship deals, namely Nike Ronaldinho, Adidas with David Beckham and Reebok with Thierry Henry, has become a huge factor that drives the success and sales of a basketball boot maker, but is viewed as at a high price of injury and stagnation in football boot research and development. All we could predict for the future is integration with sensor technology, lighter and stronger football boots and more outlandish designs and styles.