Ben Felderstein In 1998, Brazilian soccer star Ronaldo helped Nike introduce the Mercurial football boot to the world during the World Cup in his home country. Adorned in the blue and yellow colors of his Brazilian banner, the striking look started a new potential for football boots to cross over into lifestyle footwear. Starting with the brand’s Air Zoom Mercurial Trainer, Nike has created silhouettes ranging from the Air Force 1 to the air Max 1 that have regularly payed homage to the Mercurial line. The Swoosh is expected to reveal its next Mercurial football boot on February 7th, so stay tuned to Sneaker News for updates regarding that. In the meantime, check out a brief history of the influential line below.
1998: Air Zoom Mercurial Trainer – The sneaker that started it all for the Mercurial line, transferred Ronaldo’s flare from the pitch onto the streets.
2001: Air Max Mercurial – The hybrid trainer was combined with a running sneaker, featuring an Air Bag heel and TPU spikes on its upper.
2002: Nike Air Mercurial Vapor 365 – This offering offers an ultimate fit for athletes looking to play soccer anywhere, anytime.
2011: Nike Lunar Gato Safari – Borrowing a color scheme from Cristiano Ronaldo’s signature line, this look became an cult-classic street icon.
2013: Kobe 8 Mambacurial – Using cues from the Nike Mercurial Vapor IX, Kobe was able to show his love for soccer one again, kick-starting an annual cross-over between the pitch and the hardwood.
2014: HTM Nike Flyknit Mercurial SP – This sneaker became the blueprint for casual footwear for a generation, laying the groundwork for Flyknit-infused iterations to follow in its path.
