Nike

We’ve finally got our first look at the all-new Nike PhantomVNM, which will officially drop on Jan. 19, 2019. The boot will be worn by the likes of Harry Kane and Alex Morgan, so you can probably guess what sort of footballer these are made for.

“My finishing is a balance between power and placement,” said Morgan in Nike’s press release for the cleat. “It depends where I am in the box, but I’d say my focus is usually 60/40 accuracy versus power.”

The Nike Total 90 brand was introduced in 2000 and effectively ended in 2013 with the launch of the Hypervenom, but the legacy of the boot was secure with the introduction of the Total 90 Laser range in 2007. 

The Total 90 Laser I was synonymous with a 21-year-old Wayne Rooney — the Manchester United forward was in the midst of winning his first English Premier League title while scoring a then career best total of 23 goals in 55 appearances. 

From a boot perspective, the 2018 Ballon d’Or was won by Nike. Three of the top four finishers in voting sport the Swoosh, and Luka Modric (Mercurial Vapor XII) scooped the ultimate prize while Kylian Mbappe (Mercurial Superfly VI) nabbed the inaugural Kopa Trophy. To honor the achievements of its footballers, Nike has released a limited edition “Golden Touch” version of both boots.

With qualification secured and the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup a little over 200 days away, the USWNT countdown to France is well and truly on. The world’s No. 1 ranked side will again be sporting Nike threads at the event (the partnership between the sportswear giant and U.S. Soccer has been going strong since ’95 and has a current deal through 2022), and the team will receive women’s exclusive jerseys for the event.

Beginning with the 1998-99 season, FC Barcelona made the switch from Kappa to Nike, and the Swoosh has been adorning the Blaugrana shirts ever since. Accordingly, 2018 marks 20 years of partnership between the Catalan club and the American corporation, and to celebrate the occasion, Nike is releasing a shirt which incorporates design elements from every Nike Barca home jersey ever released.

Shortly after capturing The Best FIFA Men’s Player 2018 award with 29.05 percent of the vote, Nike honored Croatia and Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric with the Mercurial Vapor PE “Modric” boot. As the Nike press release detailed, “the boot’s full multi-chrome upper shines with an iridescent finish.” These are some gaudy boots.

In honor of Formula One driver Ayrton Senna — who was born in São Paulo, supported Corinthians and won three F1 world championships before dying in an accident at the ’94 San Marino Grand Prix — the Brazilian club has launched a third jersey which is stylistically based on black and gold car that Senna used while driving with the Lotus race team.

In lieu of a sponsor, the kit features Senna’s signature and 41 golden lines which represent the total number of Grand Prix victories that the driver recorded throughout his career. The result is absolutely stunning.

The collaboration between Paris Saint-Germain and the Jordan Brand drops tomorrow (Sept. 14), and we now have our first official glimpse at the entire collection. The offerings include two special edition kits that will be worn by PSG exclusively in the Champions League, a couple Air Jordan sneakers, Phantom and Mercurial boots with Jumpman and Swoosh branding and the entire gambit of lifestyle clothing (jackets, shorts, tees, parkas, pants, etc.).