One of the longest running boot sagas in recent memory looks like it could be set to end in the very near future after Erling Haaland turned up for his official Manchester City presentation wearing the unreleased adidas X Speedportal .1.
PUMA? Nike? adidas? After Erling Haaland tied up his playing future and put to bed any rumours by signing with Manchester City following months of speculation it now looks like we could be getting to the end of a similarly long saga – that of his next brand. Haaland has been a Nike athlete for virtually the entirety of his professional career, but with his time with the Swoosh coming to an end there was no sign of a renewal. Further fuel was thrown on to the speculative fire when he was spotted recovering from injury in the adidas X Speedflow, that following a meeting with Zinedine Zidane at adidas HQ in Herzogenaurach. But rumours of a move to PUMA wouldn’t go away either.
![haaland 5-min.jpg](/media/137707/haaland-5-min.jpg)
![haaland 4-min.jpg](/media/137706/haaland-4-min.jpg)
That rumour also seemed to gain a bit of traction following his switch to PUMA-sponsored City, particularly when he was spotted wearing the PUMA Ultra 1.3 ‘City Edition’ in some of his promo pictures. But it’s looking like adidas have won the race to capture the Norwegian’s signature, after Haaland wore the as-yet unreleased X Speedportal .1 in his official presentation. Despite nothing official being announced, it’s the clearest indication yet that adidas have got their hands on one of the hottest young strikers in the game.
With the world’s eyes upon him and having just announced that he will take the number 9 shirt at City, there’s no way that this was just a case of ‘grab the nearest boot and get out on stage’. This was a planned move. The fact that he was in the unreleased launch colour of the next gen X Speedportal, which takes on a contrasting look to the City kit, making them stick out a mile, adds to that argument.
The race for his signature is one that we’ve said adidas simply must win, and it seems they are now in the final stages of getting this one over the line.
![haaland 3-min.jpg](/media/137705/haaland-3-min.jpg)
![haaland 2-min.jpg](/media/137704/haaland-2-min.jpg)
All that remains is an official announcement…