PUMA are storming through 2019 with serious muscle. Headline players, new club partnerships, and a boot line-up that’s as strong as it’s ever been. When you’re luring in new elite level players each week you must be something right. Time to find out what the Future 19.1 is all about.
Sitting alongside the ONE 19.1, the Future 19.1 is the more experimental of the two leading PUMA boots. A close up look at it confirms that. The perfect design to typify PUMA’s maverick approach. The upper is criss crossed in a variety of shapes that end up looking like a topographic map of a fingerprint; an appropriate feature considering this boot has the PUMA fingerprint all over it… both literally and figuratively.
The boots out of the box are actually a bit scary. The design is busy, a lot to process. The FUTURE 19.1 has a slightly stiff upper as you feel the texture in your hands, and the unchanged soleplate is crafted to be fairly stiff out of the box to aid responsiveness. All in all, it blends together for something that might scare some away, but we’re here to tell you that there should be zero fear in taking these on… there’s a winner in this box.
The comfort of evoKnit has always been one of the most underrated of all the knitted options on the market. As soon as you grab the collar and slip your foot in, this section stretches easily and wraps your foot in a warm embrace, as with the previous edition. While the forefoot does feel a bit stiff at first, the midfoot around the laces and the fully exposed knit sink around your foot for a harnessed feel.
As the luxurious evo-pillow does everything except tuck you in, the stiff forefoot and soleplate soften up quite quickly. It’s never going to be as soft as the other portion, but it’s not supposed to be… the soleplate needs to be able to help you feel stable and ready to make quick cuts. The forefoot also has to be ready to last you a season and keep from falling apart after your first match in a proper deluge. Once everything softens up, it blends together for an amazing fit and feel.
Does the NETFIT system offer a better fit or any type of competitive advantage? Depends. Yes, the concept is intriguing, but we’re not quite prepared to call it ground-breaking innovation. We’d like to see how much this can improve the fit for incredibly wide or narrow feet, or if someone has truly customized the lacing to a unique foot type, but our fairly standard feet worked best with a fairly standard lacing.
We’ve seen a wealth of PUMA Future athletes wearing these boots without laces, and we were quite curious to see whether we felt like this was our best option. After trying it out, it still is comfortable going the laceless route, but we preferred them laced up. Plus, we haven’t quite hit the notoriety to have PUMA custom fit our boots, so we’re sure that has quite a bit to do with players like Reus leaving the laces at home.
PUMA have declared the Future 19.1 to be comprised of an FG/AG stud set-up, but we’re a bit reticent to say this is the answer to all your turf/AG prayers. The studs are perfect for any firm ground pitch, but, the conical studs felt just a bit too long to wear on an AG.
Balls out and the Future 19.1 starts to showcase why this boot silo has been so impressive since inception. The upper that is exposed and has the fingerprint design combines with a thin inner layer to make every moment on the ball feel smooth, impressively thin, and lightly cushioned. There might be a mess of different shapes and textures on the upper, but there’s never a moment that feels dampened or harmed by the texture given from the design.
Pigeon-holing the Future as a boot for someone wanting dynamic dribbling or comfortable control would be a mistake. PUMA’s NetFit phenom is able to get an exceedingly high level of what modern football boots are striving for with every release: thin (not barefoot), slightly padded (not dampening), aggressive (not ridiculous), and with some form of modern twist that feels like it might actually be a worthy addition (not a gimmick).
When you pass or shoot with the Future, the layered upper really elevates this boot into elite company. There’s a crisp aspect that comes with the firm texture in the upper that molds well with the slight bit of padding. It makes you feel like the boot is allowing you to get into every crease in the ball while still helping take some of the sting from that zipped 1-2 you’re playing.
You also get the shooting feel that only a few boots on the market can boast. The build of the Future makes sure that every shot pings off the upper while still giving that warm sensation that every boot strives to provide.
The flex of the soleplate lends itself perfectly to the moment when you have to either dig in to stop, or cut hard to change direction. Conical patterns will never be seen as aggressive, but they will almost always get the job done. We also think that the slight thickness of the upper and nature of the soleplate will lend itself to letting this boot last you for well over a season before it comes time to look for an update. Plus, you’ll need all that time to try out the millions of lacing possibilities (before landing back on the standard set-up probably being the best).
To pass judgement on this boot, we’d definitely have to say that the PUMA Future continues to be one of the best options for any player, playing with any style, or playing at any level. The comfort provided by all of PUMA’s current options is absolutely top-notch, and the feel that these boots allow on the ball means that you can get on with your business with no distractions. PUMA are mixing it at the very top. The Future is impressive, and the future is looking even better.
Pick up the PUMA Future 19.1 football boots at prodirectsoccer.com
