Lotto Launch First Reflective Boot Model - The Lotto Solista
After teasing a 'mystery' boot last week Lotto have officially revealed their new boot model, the Solista - The world's first totally reflective football boot. The Italian brand are renowned for giving us something a little bit different when it comes to football boots and the Solista definitely continues that trend.
The idea was born from Lotto's philosophy "Be different". No one can accuse Lotto of playing it safe when designing football boots, the Italian brand supplied us with the first ever laceless boot, the Zhero Gravity, and now they've smashed through the innovation doors once again to bring us another world's first. Note: Our photography contains both the boots shot normally (darker pics) and shot with a flash to show off the reflective aspect (lighter pics) Got it? Good.
Lotto's game plan was to develop a product which was very different and very innovative from what had been seen on the market in the past. Most brands have been focused on colour themes, but Lotto wanted to go above all that, so what's above the colour? Light... From there the Solista model was born.
As with anything, boots have to look great, but more importantly they have to work great too, so onto the tech talk - Lotto have used a high-quality microfibre with smear reflector effect, which is applied on a single-piece upper with one single stitching on the heel. The idea of a single-piece upper is to deliver a snug, close to the foot fit that allows the most natural ball feel. The Solista is waterproof meaning the boot will stay light (in more ways than one) during rain.
Combined with a unique and simple design, the Solista offers a never seen before visibility. The boot also features a microfibre lining, removable EVA insole and microfibre tongue with padded central reinforcements to cushion the balls impact on the instep. The TX sole, a new concept, features 12 two-tone TPU studs with double geometry - lamellar and triangular - to provide excellent traction both on landing and turning.
The Lotto lozenge logo is placed on both sides of the Solista in a trendy neon green, the laces come in electric blue and on the tongue is an embroidered musical note, which is the Solista s hallmark. The Solista will be worn by a select group of Lotto's Serie A players including, Luca Toni, Christian Maggio, Riccardo Meggiorini and Andrea Ranocchia.
Are they the world's first reflective football boot because other brands have thought about it but dismissed it as a bad idea or is it because it genuinely is innovative? Your call. The boots don't look reflective in normal light, as you can see, so unless you're playing at night and they reflect under the floodlights we're not sure when you will see the reflective aspect on the pitch. Suppose you could always stick 'em to the handlebars of your bike for the ride home after training?
When you're trying to grab a bigger share of the market you sometimes have to stand out and standing out is something that will certainly happen if you're wearing the Solista. We've always got a lot of time for new ideas and designs on football boots, so reflective or not the Solista is still a top looking boot. 
The new Lotto Solista football boots are available to pre-order from selected online stockists including Pro-Direct Soccer. What do you think of the new colourway? Join the conversation online, on Twitter and on Facebook.
