Nike began their official tease phase of the next-generation Mercurial this weekend as pitch-side branding announcing the launch date was in place at the homes of their sponsored clubs. All eyes on February 7.

Millions of viewers worldwide would have spotted Swoosh heavy branding on the digital pitch-side boards at Chelsea vs Newcastle, PSG vs Montpellier, and Barcelona vs Alaves, all of which gave cryptic clues to what Nike have in store for their next-generation Mercurial silo. The branding flashed between the Mercurial logo, February 7, and an image of a sprinting Cheetah as Nike made their first move in what is destined to be their headline launch of 2018.

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The pitch-side boards will remain in place right up until that Feb 7 date when Nike will drop an epic pre-World Cup bomb. Expect a typically A-list launch event, colossal Swoosh swag, and footballing royalty from around the world. When Nike do a Mercurial launch, they don't do half measures.

As for the boot itself, we've already seen a number of lead Nike players wearing blackout editions of the boot including, Kylian Mbappe, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Neymar. All three of those players will headline the Mercurial through to the 2018 World Cup, but Nike will have a few killer surprises lined-up along the road to Russia, you can be sure of that.

Stay tuned for more on the imminent Nike Mercurial launch...