Behind the Scenes in Montebelluna: Crafting the Nike Tiempo Legend IX "Made in Italy"
The Nike Tiempo Legend IX "Made in Italy" is one of the best boot releases of the year, and some media outlets were lucky enough to get a look inside Nike's Montebelluna factory and see how they were made by some of the most skilled hands in the game. Thanks to Unisport and Soccerbible for the photos and videos.
Behind the Scenes at Montebelluna
Italy is a country with many strings to its bow, be it food, drink, beautiful cities and landscapes, rich history and culture or their automotive and sartorial expertise. Thanks to the style with which they do everything and their centuries-long tradition of making leather shoes, the country is also home to Nike's most important boot factory, located in the town of Montebelluna in the province of Treviso.
Nike-sponsored players have their boots custom made here to their exact specifications, with hundreds of different lasts (molds of players' feet) labelled with some of the biggest names in football. Master craftsmen who are some of the most talented in the industry work here, making boots for the likes of Kylian Mbappé, Kevin De Bruyne and Cristiano Ronaldo, as well as the best players of generations gone by like Rondaldo and Ronaldinho. The Tiempo Legend IX "Made in Italy" gives ordinary people the chance to sample a quality of footwear that is usually reserved for players at the very highest level.
The whole process is explained in detail in the video above, outlining all of the steps and intricacies involved and showing us the journey of Sandro Tonali's Tiempos from a rather shapeless leather upper to an elite-spec piece of equipment. Check out some great shots of the whole process below, courtesy of SoccerBible.
Given that we're so accustomed to looking at the finished version of football boots , it's fascinating to have some insight into the earlier stages of production and see just how much skill, precision and highly specialised machinery is necessary to arrive at that end product.
In an age and industry where technology and mass production reign supreme, it's also refreshing to see that the human touch still plays a vital role in delivering the best possible outcome from the manufacturing process.
Would you like to pay a visit to Nike's Montebelluna factory after seeing these photos? Are there any other legendary centres of football expertise you'd like to take a look around? Let us know in the comments.
