After a summer like no other for new football boots, we take a look at the top ten selling World Cup football boots.
Nike and adidas have written their own history when it comes to Brazil 2014, and everyone will have their views on which brand came out on top. Millions tuned in to the World Cup to witness games dominated by an array of unmissable football boots, but which were most popular with the boot-buying public? We turned to the folks at Pro-Direct Soccer to find out the top ten selling boots of the 2014 World Cup.
10 | Nike Magista Opus (Volt/Metallic Gold/Black/Hyper Punch) - The low-cut brother of the Nike Magista Obra was a huge on-pitch hit in Brazil with the majority of Nike’s ex-CTR360 players making the natural transition. The Opus intended to serve as a lower priced (£160.00) alternative to the Magista Obra, but went on to be one of Nike’s most worn boot at the World Cup. Nike’s World Cup hype-cycle saw the Magista Obra take the spotlight, with little attention given to the Opus. With that considered, it didn’t do too bad coming in at number ten.
9 | Nike HyperVenom Phantom (Crimson/Volt/Hyper Punch/Metallic) - The Nike HyperVenom Phantom took a back seat to the Magista Obra and Mercurial Superfly during the World Cup build-up and throughout the tournament, so much so that it only came in as the ninth best selling World Cup boot. Nike might have hoped for a better return for a boot that was worn by tournament poster-boy Nemyar and others including Wayne Rooney, Daniel Sturridge, Gonzalo Higuain and Clint Dempsey.
8 | Nike Mercurial Vapor X (Hyper Punch/Gold/Black) - For such a landmark boot it was a little disappointing to see the Nike Mercurial Vapor X over-shadowed by the Mercurial Superfly IV. Ten generations of the Mercurial Vapor might have called for a bigger celebration, but like the Magista Opus, the Vapor X slipped into Nike’s World Cup line-up slightly under the radar. Worn in favour of the Superfly IV by players including Eden Hazard and Pedro Rodriguez, the Nike Mercurial Vapor X left Brazil as the eighth best seller.
7 | PUMA evoPOWER 1 Tricks (Beetroot Purple/Bluebird White) - PUMA enter the top ten at number seven with the evoPOWER ‘Tricks’. Despite losing headline players Cesc Fabregas and Mario Balotelli before the knock-out rounds, not to mention Marco Reus through pre-tournament injury, the evoPOWER continued to be one of Brazil’s most stand-out boots. “Is he wearing odd boots...” was heard in pubs and fan parks worldwide, getting PUMA the attention they set out to achieve with such a simple yet effective concept. Out-selling the Mercurial Vapor and HyperVenom Phantom goes to show just how effective it was.
6 | Nike Tiempo Legend V (Volt/Hyper Punch/Black) - You can introduce as many new innovations as possible but one boot that will always return consistent sales is the Nike Tiempo Legend. Perhaps it's due to the lack of leather boots on the market these days or the fact that it's simply a world class boot. Nike will always sell as many Tiempos as they can make.
5 | Nike HyperVenom Phantom (Gold/Volt/Black) - For a boot that wasn’t released until half way through the tournament and worn for no more than a game and a half, a top five finish is impressive for the “Gold/Volt/Black” Nike HyperVenom Phantom. A Neymar-exclsuvie was a no-brainer for Nike and was always going to sell well; we only wish Andrea Pirlo signed-off his international career with a gold pair of Tiempos. That really would have been something.
4 | adidas F50 adizero (Battle Pack) - The adidas F50 adizero ‘Battle Pack’ just missed out on a podium finish after claiming fourth spot. The boots were everywhere you looked in Brazil and were worn by some of the tournament's stand-out players including James Rodriguez, Luis Suarez, Thomas Muller and Lionel Messi. They were however left in the locker room by some of adidas' biggest names including Arjen Robben, Robin van Persie and Karim Benzema. Over all though there’s no questioning their impact on Brazil, with the F50 scoring a total of 48 tournament goals.
3 | adidas Predator Instinct (Battle Pack) - Unsurprisingly the adidas Predator Instinct was the best selling ‘Battle Pack’ boot of Brazil, finishing third in the overall running. Dropping in as part of the ‘Battle Pack’ collection meant that it was a soft launch for the Predator Instinct. If adidas had given the Instinct more of a push throughout the tournament they might have shifted a few more, but we’re sure they’re not penny counting after the boots official launch earlier this month. The adidas ‘Battle Pack’ was certainly the most visible collection in Brazil, but the Three Stripes couldn’t out-sell their Swoosh swinging rivals.
2 | Nike Magista Obra (Volt/Metallic Gold/Black/Hyper Punch) - When you back a boot to the high heavens and back, you’re going to shift a few pairs. That’s exactly what Nike did with a marketing campaign to dwarf all others. A completely new boot with radical technology and a high price-point meant that Nike really had to sell this boot. After a monster launch campaign, the boots were available to pre-order from April, giving Nike extra time to convince us that they really were a 'game-changing innovation'. It did the trick, and even though only a handful of players wore them in Brazil, they finished the World Cup as the second best selling boot. Oh and they also notched the winner in the final. We bet that didn’t do the sales any harm.
1 | Nike Mercurial Superfly (Hyper Punch/Gold/Black) - Job done for Nike. Their two biggest innovations took gold and silver when it came to sales. Nike spent millions on advertising and the reaped the rewards with the Mercurial Superfly out-selling every other boot on show at the World Cup. Despite a series of anonymous showings for Cristiano Ronaldo, the Superfly IV was a huge hit with fans who didn't baulk at the £230.00 price tag. The hype created by the return of the Superfly franchise was always going to result in big numbers. Where Nike take it from here will determine whether it continues to sell well or falls victim to high price as before.
All featured football boots are available at Pro-Direct Soccer.
