Boot Watch #014 | Elkeson, Henderson, Messi, Rashford
Feb 28, 2016, by Pat
Welcome to the 14th episode of Boot Watch, our weekly update on the most important boot spots. Ranging from the Champions League to the Australian A-League and even U-16 football, Boot Watch has them all.
Lionel Messi - Adidas Messi 15.1
This week saw the debut of the latest colorway of Lionel Messi's very own football boot silo, a rather flashy effort in "Semi Solar Slime". On a side note, wouldn't it have been cool had he worn the stunning Ballon d'Or boots for a longer time?
Jordan Henderson - Nike Hypervenom Phinish
Magista-regular Jordan Henderson surprised spectators in training this week, lacing up in Nike Hypervenom Phinish cleats instead of his usual pair of Opuses. In today's Capital One Cup final against Manchester City, the Liverpool captain confirmed his choice. Henderson's new Hypervenom boots appear to be non-modified.
Marcus Rashford - Nike Mercurial Vapor X
Manchester United's up-an-coming forward made headlines this week, not only by scoring four goals in his first two games for the club, but also with his rather unique boot choice. Closely following United's "black boot rule", Rashford gave his Bright Mango Nike Mercurial Vapor X a black coating, creating an unusual piece of footwear.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang - Nike Mercurial Superfly IV
Having switched back and forth between the Nike Hypervenom Phantom II and the Mercurial Superfly, Borussia Dortmund's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was back in the latter once again this week, against Porto and Hoffenheim.
Joaozinho - Puma v1.06
FC Krasnodar's Joaozinho was another player with a unique choice of boots this week as he wore a pair of the re-issued Puma v1.06 boots - or are they from 2006?
Elkeson - Nike Mercurial Vapor X
Possibly on the look for an improved or new contract, Shanghai SIPG's Elkeson decided to paint over the brandings of his Squadron Blue Nike Mercurial Vapor X cleats.
Anders Waagan - Nike Magista Obra + Nike Hypervenom Phantom II
Who doesn't love an odd boot combo? Norway U-16's Anders Waagan was at it this week, combining black Nike Magista Obras and bronze Nike Hypervenom Phantom IIs to form an unusual, but surprisingly well-fitting pair of cleats.
Ali Abbas - Nike Hypervenom Phinish Ousadia Alegria
Be it to express his admiration for Neymar or just to wear a good-looking pair of soccer cleats, Sydney FC's Ali Abbas laced up in Neymar's latest signature release, Ousadia Alegria, in the Hypervenom Phinish variant this week.
Brandon O'Neill - Adidas 11pro
Sydney FC's Brandon O'Neill, who was already featured in this series last month, once again got the boot world talking with a unique pair of Adidas 11pro football boots. This time, it was a women's-exclusive colorway launched in late 2014.
Sido Jombati - Nike Match Mercurial
Already featured on this site earlier this week was Wycombe Wanderers' Sido Jombati, who laced up in an extremely rare pair of football boots - 16-year-old Nike Match Mercurials, to be exact.
We hope you enjoyed this week's spots and, as always, please make sure to let us know if you find any errors or even suggest own spots we might have missed.
T90-Inspired Nike Barclays WSL 26-27 Ball Released
Nike and the Women's Super League have officially revealed the official match ball for the 26-27 Barclays WSL and WSL2 seasons. Built on Nike's Control ball model, the design draws heavy inspiration from Nike's iconic Total 90 era, bringing a retro-infused visual identity to top-tier English women's football.
The design features vibrant multi-coloured rings and graphic lines in red, pink, blue, and black against a white base. These accents are arranged to create a subtle strobe effect when spinning in flight, aiding visibility for players on the pitch. The Barclays WSL version features a gold Nike Swoosh inside the signature circular ring, while the WSL2 edition showcases a silver Swoosh paired with bright pink detailing.
Underneath the graphics, the ball utilizes Nike Control technology with debossed grooves and engineered paneling designed to deliver stable aerodynamics and consistent touch in all conditions. The new ball will be used across all 26-27 WSL, WSL2, and domestic cup matches.
FIFA Kit Creator Adds Dozens of New Old & 26-27 Kit Templates
FIFA Kit Creator has expanded their extensive template library with a large batch of brand-new jersey structures.
The latest update introduces base designs for the upcoming 26-27 season alongside classic retro cuts from iconic past eras. Creators matteuscm and KARAVASHKIN contributed heavily to this release, bringing fresh builds across major manufacturers including Adidas, Nike, Puma, Castore, Hummel, and Umbro. Among the modern additions are official base templates for upcoming club kits such as the Adidas 26-27 AS Roma and Tiro 27 cuts, the Nike 26-27 SC Freiburg template, Castore 26-27 Everton home layout, and new Puma designs for Palmeiras and Fluminense.
Updated national team templates for Ireland, Denmark, Indonesia, and DR Congo are also now available for creators to customize.
Beyond contemporary 26-27 cuts, the update adds several famous historical templates. Users can create concepts using nostalgic patterns like the Adidas 2004 Greece home template, the 05-06 AC Milan and Bayer Leverkusen cuts, Nike 2010 and 2014 Brazil silhouettes, and Puma 2006 Italy away template.
All new template options are live and available on FIFA Kit Creator.
Outstanding CP Cacereño 26-27 Home & Away Kits Released
Spanish club CP Cacereño and new kit supplier Hummel have officially unveiled the team's new home and away kits for the 26-27 season. Marking the beginning of their technical partnership, Hummel has created two distinct custom designs heavily inspired by local culture and mythology.
The CP Cacereño 26-27 home kit features a rich green base dominated by an intricate graphic depicting dragon scales across the front panel. The design links directly to the club's release slogan, "No soy un futbolista, soy un dragón". White detailing is applied to the classic collar, sleeve cuffs, Hummel chevrons, and sponsor logos to complete the jersey.
The 26-27 away kit presents a half-and-half split layout featuring a white base paired with an orange front panel. The bottom portion of the shirt highlights a graphic illustration of the historic fortress walls of Cáceres alongside dragon tail motifs, finished with fine black detailing along the V-neck collar and sleeve cuffs.
Samsunspor 26-27 Home Kit Released
Turkish Süper Lig club Samsunspor has officially launched its new striped home kit for the 26-27 season, produced by Hummel.
The Hummel Samsunspor 26-27 home jersey features vertical red stripes over a white base, paired with plain white sleeves accented by red sleeve cuffs. A red polo collar with white edge piping and a red V-neck inset gives the shirt a classic look, while iconic white Hummel chevrons rest on the shoulders.
The reverse side of the shirt incorporates a white back panel for player names and numbers, framed by red stripe details at the top and bottom hem, along with red Samsunspor lettering printed on the upper back. The kit is now officially available for pre-order.