Women's World Cup

In honor of this summer’s biggest soccer event, this week’s post will deal with everything Women’s World Cup. While this page is usually about the men’s game and men’s apparel, I thought this would be the perfect time to let our female viewers know what is going on. Just over the border in Canada, the 2015 Women’s World Cup will be played beginning this month and will conclude in early July. 24 teams from all over the world will be fighting to determine who is the best in the world.  It should be a great tournament with a lot of action.

The United States Women’s National team will be one of the favorites to win this summer as they always are. They will be looking to avenge the loss they had to Japan four years ago in Germany. A lot of the same women whose hearts were broken in 2011 will have a chance to make things right this time around. Stars like Abby Wambach, Carli Lloyd, Megan Rapinoe, Hope Solo, Sydney Leroux, and of course America’s new sweetheart Alex Morgan will be wearing the red, white, and blue on the field again. As always Nike will be supplying the uniforms for the United States and this year they haven’t let the people down.

The away kit is the same as the new jersey the men have been wearing this year. It starts with white on the shoulder with royal blue around the chest and as you go down the shirt there are darker shades of blue until you reach the shorts and the socks. The bottom half is the standard USA navy blue colorway which gives it a classic, bold feel. I think Nike put a great twist on something simple and gave the jersey some new life for the summer. The home kit is the same sharp looking all white with navy blue trim, familiar yet timeless.

Nike has taken their women’s game to a whole other level this World Cup. They have always been a major player in the apparel game but this year they are focusing on special women’s footwear. Nike has released special colorways for their four women’s cleats. The styles are similar to the men’s but the color puts a special twist on them. The electric blue and green design will definitely catch attention during the game.

Champions League Final

This Saturday marks the end of yet another amazing UEFA Champions League season. The 2014/15 season has brought us many exciting storylines and breathtaking moments. On June 6th at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin, Germany the last two teams standing will battle it out in most important 90 minutes of the year. Barcelona, the champions of Spain, will be slightly favored over the Italian giants Juventus. It is all shaping up to be an entertaining final and there are many intriguing side stories to consider as well.

The last time an Italian team appeared in the Final was in 2009/10 when Inter beat Bayern Munich. Since then the competition has been dominated by Spanish and German teams. Barcelona is one of those teams that has really made their mark on the competition in recent history. Barca won the cup last in 2011 while the last time Juventus won was almost two decades ago in 1996/96. Will recent trends stay true, or are the Italians overdue?

Saturdays Final is also a important date for a few key players. Most notably, longtime Barca midfield maestro, Xavi, will be playing his last game for the club. At the age of 35 he has decided to pursue playing opportunities elsewhere in Qatar. Xavi, World Cup winner and Captain of Barcelona, has appeared over 600 times for the club. He lead them to three champions league trophies in his time in Catalonia and holds the record for most career appearances in the competition with almost 200. It will be sad to see a legend go but he is leaving the club in good hands. After all the world's best player in Lionel Messi wears the number 10 for Barcelona.



Messi will also be debuting his own exclusive signature adidas shoe. With Adidas's recent release of two totally new soccer cleats, Messi has been presented with his own pair which will be available after the weekend. Also, for those who watched this past summers World Cup will definitely heard of the biting incident between Luis Suarez and Giogrio Chiellini. This match will mark the first time the two have played since the infamous moment. Let's hope Suarez can keep his mouth closed and focus on the game.



The Final can be seen on Fox Sports 1 this Saturday June, 6th at 3pm. Tune in for a great match!

Adidas Change the Game

Two days ago, on May 25th, 2015 Adidas made an announcement that would change the landscape of the soccer apparel market for years to come. They are retiring their current line of soccer cleats and releasing two revolutionary silos. There will no longer be f50's, Predators, adiPure, or Nitrocharges. This is a huge change because these have been the staples of the Adidas line up for years, and in the Predator's case, over two decades. The four styles have been extremely well received and countless players around the world swear to their favorite shoe. It raises a question, how will fans view these?

The tug of war that has been going on since Nike established themselves in the 90's rages on. Nike recently took the reigns on the market back with their release of the Hypervenom and Superfly's. With the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar Jr.wearing these silos at the World Cup, Nike had a noticeable advantage over Adidas. Although that was last year, and Adidas are looking towards the future. Their designers and engineers have been working tirelessly and consulting with some of the most respected footballers in the world to create the perfect boot. The two leading powers in the football apparel world are in a sort of arms race with one another, seeing who has the best weapons to offer. To add fuel to the fire, Adidas recently stole Nike's two leading shoe designers. They were the men who inspired the new Superfly's and it's revolutionary sock liner system. Their influence is apparent in Adidas's new designs.

Part of adidas' footwear revolution, the X is a cleat for the game-changers looking for speed and agility. Reinforced X-Cage layers wrap the foot in lightweight support during high agility moves. Techfit collar for a compression fit around the ankle for dynamic support and a snug feel. These will be hard to miss on the pitch with a bright yellow design. Weighing in at an impressive 7.5 ounces, the quickest players in the world like Luis Suarez and Gareth Bale will be lacing them up in the near future.

Perfect ball handling, perfect fit, perfect stability, total 360 degree control. Part of adidas' footwear revolution, the ACE is designed for the playmaker who dominates the entire game. The Totalskin synthetic upper for flawless feel with first touch cushioning. 3D Control Web surface for perfect ball handling, and non stop grip for control in every condition. The Ace15 as well as the X15 are available for $219.99.

New Balance Makes a Statement

It recently came to light that Warrior Football will be rebranded as New Balance Football. Warrior burst onto the scene in 2011 when it became Liverpool FC's kit sponsor. This made waves in the footballing world because of the stature of Liverpool and the relative obscurity of its kit sponsor. Warrior, owned by parent company New Balance, is better known for its affiliation with lacrosse in the United States. They tried to make the jump to the enormous world football market but haven't had much luck. With competition from powerhouses Nike and Adidas as well as Puma, there isn't much room for anyone else.

Liverpool was their big property but they also expanded to another English Premier League team in Stoke City. They also made their way further throughout the continent, popping up as sponsors of Sevilla in Spain, as well is FC Porto of Portugal. Their brand was growing and they started to accumulate a number of teams. Being the jersey sponsor of these teams was not Warrior's only ambition, they were also involved in the cleat business. Warrior released a few different styles of shoes that brought variety to the market and the field. Once they released their line of boots, they went out to find professionals who could wear them and market them. Warrior endorsed athletes included Vincent Kompany, captain and defender of the Belgian National team and Manchester City FC, and compatriot Marouane Fellaini, a midfielder for Manchester United.

While Warrior did make an impact on the game, it was not big enough. New Balance decided it would have a better chance of becoming a major player in the market. They have already made strides to do so, designing new kits for their teams and signing many more athletes to endorse their product. Aaron Ramsey, Samir Nasri, Adnan Januzaj, Fernando, and Jesus Navas have all been spotted this season wearing New Balance boots. They haven't wasted any time putting their product out there and it seems to be well received by the fans and the players. I am looking forward to seeing what they have to offer in their first full season.

Rare Gold Ronaldo's

Nike has recently set the market alight with their exclusive release of a pair of Mercurial Superflys IV. These aren't just any pair of Superflys, they are the CR7 Rare Gold. After winning the Ballon D'or earlier this year, awarded to the best soccer player in the world, Nike has awarded their star with a very special pair of boots.

The boot features an incredible gold and black color scheme symbolic of his trophy winning season. After winning the Champions League with Real Madrid and scoring an astonishing 50 goals throughout the season there is no doubt he deserves his own pair of limited edition boots. A soccer revolution, the new Superfly has a Dynamic Fit Collar for locked down comfort and incredible touch at full speed. Weighing in at an incredible 6.4 ounces Superflys are extremely lightweight and fast. They are designed for players who are extremely quick and need to stop, start, and change directions in the blink of an eye. Despite their light weight they also provide a lot of support with Nike Flywire technology and an improved outsole and stud configuration.

In honor of winning his 3rd Ballon D'or trophy Nike have only released 333 pairs to the public which sold out online in a matter of minutes. The retail price is a cool $399.99 and that is without the many micro diamonds embedded in Ronaldo's personal pair. A luxurious feature for the king of football. Many believe he deserves no less, after all he does have the golden touch. Especially for those who were lucky enough to snap up a pair on their release. Pairs are being sold on Ebay in the region of $2,500. Not a bad profit, definitely worthy of Nike’s million dollar man.