Cristiano Ronaldo Now Happy With Next-Gen Nike Mercurial, Receives Personalized Version

Update: Cristiano Ronaldo's boots have been personalized by Nike for the Portuguese superstar - he wore them in the Coppa Italia match against Inter, scoring a brace. They now feature the letters CR7, the name of his son and his signature celebration logo. Thanks to UnderStats for the observation.

Cristiano Ronaldo Receives Special Boots Inscription For Passing Pele's Goal Mark

Apr 23, 2021

Cristiano Ronaldo Receives Personalized Nike Mercurial Superfly 14 Dragonfly Boots

Cristiano Ronaldo Wears Next-Gen Nike Mercurial For Full 90 Minutes

Update: Cristiano Ronaldo has returned to the next-generation Nike Mercurial Superfly 8 Dragonfly boots for the Serie A match against Sampdoria. In contrast to last weekend, he wore the boots for the full 90 minutes.

Cristiano Ronaldo Wears Next-Gen Nike Mercurial Superfly 8 Boots For Full 90 Minutes

Problems With Next-Gen Mercurial: Cristiano Ronaldo Switches Boots At Halftime

This weekend, Cristiano Ronaldo was supposed to be the first male player to inaugurate Nike's next generation of immaculate Mercurials. However, Cristiano Ronaldo was not satisfied with the experience during the first half, and decided to change boots during halftime - a PR disaster for Nike.

Next-Gen Nike Mercurial Superfly 8 & Vapor 14 'Dragonfly' Boots Revealed

Jan 24, 2021

Cristiano Ronaldo Returns To "Old" Nike Mercurial Superfly VII 'Dream Speed 003' Boots During Halftime

1st half vs 2nd half - Next-Gen Nike Mercurial Superfly 8 'Dragonfly' vs "Outdated" Nike Mercurial Superfly 7 'Dream Speed 003'

So, Cristiano Ronaldo stepped on the pitch at home against Bologna wearing Nike's recently released next-gen Nike Mercurial Superfly 8 'Dragonfly' boots, but as pictures of the game reveal Ronaldo changed his boots during halftime. The Juventus FC striker opted for the "old" Nike Mercurial 'Dream Speed 003' boots released on October 3rd, 2020, for the second half, a pair he is very familiar with. We believe he wore the exact same pair for a few months since the release of this colorway.

1st half vs 2nd half - Next-Gen Nike Mercurial Superfly 8 'Dragonfly' vs "Outdated" Nike Mercurial Superfly 7 'Dream Speed 003'

It's the same old story. Obviously, footballers are high-performance athletes who settle for nothing less but greatness, especially players of Ronaldo's caliber. However, Ronaldo is playing football during a time where marketing and sponsorship contracts are essential. As you probably know, Cristiano Ronaldo has a highly remunerated sponsorship contract with Nike (CR7 reportedly earns $16m USD / year for officially endorsing Nike products).

LEAKED: Here Is What Nike Pays Cristiano Ronaldo

Sep 7, 2019

Of course, this enables Ronaldo to increase his earnings, but it also means obligations like regularly switching colorways or even boot models even though he might not be satisfied with the experience. This is also the reason for big brands to create detailed camouflaged boots for their most important athletes tailored to their needs and wants although they still look like the regular cleats you can buy in any store around the world to convey the feeling of wearing exactly the same boots as your idol. To cut a long story short, this is of course a big PR disaster for Nike and one can expect them to create a new pair tailored to Cristiano Ronaldo's needs right now in Montebelluna, Italy. Nike's famous football boot factory for their most important athletes is located in Montebelluna, Italy.

Cristiano Ronaldo Match Issued Nike Mercurial Vapor Superfly 3 boots with signature - via @bcbootsuk

What do you think of this incident? Can you understand Ronaldo's decision? Drop us a line below.