It won’t have come as much of a shock to you to have seen all the positive comments and gushing endorsements following the launch of the Nike Mercurial Superfly and MV V last week.
Nike are supremely adept at getting their message out via the media and staging the launch at Old Trafford with Cristiano Ronaldo on hand was a masterstroke.
But before we all take it as read that everything we’ve seen over the past few days on the new boots is 100% incontrovertible fact, I thought I’d have a go at adding my own spin to some of Nike’s claims on the Superfly.
Weight
185g sounds impressive but when you compare it to body weight, it’s not all that. Most pro’s weigh in at 80 kilos or thereabouts. As a percentage of that, the Superfly (£225) comes in at 0.23% while something like the Puma King XL (£85) at 310g is 0.38%. Using this example, Nike is looking for you to stump up an extra £140 so you can be 0.15% lighter. Far better I would have thought to use that money and join a gym so you can shift some real weight and see some serious on pitch results.
Speed
If you are a 15 stone Sunday morning player with a beer belly the size of Thurrock, do you seriously think that these boots will make you any quicker? Or certainly, quicker that it makes any, real difference? No, thought not. Let’s not forget, the Superfly was designed for the elite and priced for the masses. For them to work at that level, surely you must have a modicum of skill or pace in the first instance? True, you might ‘feel’ that you are quicker but there’s a whole lot of difference between perception and reality.
Flywire technology
It sounds great in principle and I can see the attraction. But remember, this technology has been brought in from athletics – a non-contact sport, performed on a forgiving and responsive rubber-like surface in short bursts.' Football it aint. With more and more experts blaming more and more injuries on lightweight football boots, let’s hope for Nike’s sake that none of England’s Nike-clad finest are laid up with broken metatarsals in the run up to the 2010 World Cup.
Colourway
It’s clear from many of your responses that you don’t like the Max Orange / Abyss / Silver colourway. However, you shouldn’t be shocked that Nike have used this colourway for their launch model, particularly as most of you agree that the Black / Yellow version (as exlcusively revealed by Footy Boots some weeks back) is far superior. In my opinion, and it is just an opinion, this is so you feel a need to purchase the Black / Yellow model when it comes out, therefore giving Nike a double dose of your hard earned cash. OK, you can call it basic retail strategy but it’s not as if Nike don’t have ‘previous’ with this sort of thing. 10 MV IV colourways in a year should tell you something.
Longevity
Hey, I could be wrong about all of this. The Superfly could become the iconic boot of the 21st century and if so, I’ll gladly applaud its success. But I have my concerns. Concerns about Nike’s propaganda, their performance claims and the most definitely the price. So, should you purchase a pair of Superfly’s and are less impressed with the results or feel that what Nike has told you simply doesn’t stack up, comment below and I’ll ensure that' your views reach the ears of the people that matter……..your fellow punters.
I couldn’t agree with you more about the REAL facts on these modern football boots, but I must confess I was I bit lost with all those % in the beginning, never been good at maths though. lol
the super fly looks like hairy ass. and what happened with the lace covers from the MV IV? that’s one of the main “innovations” from the MV III to the MV IV.
I think this is a step back for nike. same as what they did with the T90 Laser
Nice writeup, I always wondered how much difference in speed lightweight boots made.
I think it’s more clever sponsorship on Nike’s part – fast boots for fast players e.g Lennon, Walcott, Agbonlahor, Ronaldo etc.
Its not so much what the boots are, it’s the difference that Nike say that they will make to your game.
And completely agree with Andy on this one. Spend your money in the gym, get fit, lose some weight if needs be and then measure the changes on the football field.
If anyone thinks that wearing a pair of boots that weigh a miniscule amount less than previously will turn them in to Robinho, Drogba or Ronaldo they are in cloud cuckoo land
were all forgetting that when we play foot ball we want to be comfortable, also when we go on to the pitch feeling good about ourselves this translates into performance, eg im a vapor fan and do where them, so when i got on to the pitch wearing something different that shows in my game as i dont feel comfortable, although i do agree with this article in the fact that u have to have some degree of skill or ace to get the most from the boots.
screw this im waiting for a step from adidas regarding the F series ( f50) (f70?)
the new F50s coming out this year definitely look like a step up!
Which tunits are you referring to?When will they be out?
I TOTALLY AGREE ON THE WEIGHT/SPEED!!!!
ive been saying this in many discussions, Ive always seriously doubted these light boots having any measurable impact on one’s speed!
the only thing i could think of is perhaps the supposed super lightweight shoe creates a psychosomatic experience in the player…perhaps they really THINK the boot is making them so much quicker, but in reality their brain is just tricking the body into being quicker…
anywho, ill take a much heavier yet more protective boot anyday. just curious, what do people consider the most PROTECTIVE boot out there?
Good article.
But i think the real fan of vapor don’t care about it.
Nike will got a lot of money from superfly.
Now, the football boot is very similar mobile phone. It’s updated every month. None of new feature, just change the colour.
Most of football boot owner use it for once or twice time then the new colour was released. They sell the old boot in the low price, and buy the new colour.
This is foot ball boot life cycle…
this is a really good article, a realistic article talking about things that nike hide, everithing in that article is true, is a boot made for “pros”, that weight just some grams and made for broke the metatarsal of the amateur player.
First off, your argument about the weight really solves nothing. Weight of the boot matters. Vapors do not soak up water like leather does. When Copas or Predators get wet they get heavy, and I don’t care who you are-your going to notice the difference. But it really shouldn’t matter in the first place, because, if you like the Vapors then get the Vapors. And if you don’t like the Vapors, then don’t get the Vapors. Just because Nike pumps tons and tons of money into advertisements for their boots doesn’t mean you use the term “propaganda,” that’s unnecessary.
The flywire technology has already been used on basketball shoes, running, and training shoes, and I realize these sports are not football, but there is a lot of lateral movement in basketball and they work. I really don’t understand the animosity towards Nike football. Is it because they are on top? It puzzles me.
I’m glad to see footy boots took their own advice and chose to review a boot honestly, not just relay what the boot maker has told them.
I will admit, i am one of those players that will get sucked in by all this ludicrous jargon.
The vapor’s are so sexy, but every time i try them on i still get dissapointed.
Nike are genius in this way, they really make you want something you really don’t want !
But in the end, i choose the right boots for my foot.
I’m sure alot of people do the same.
I am a goalkeeper and have been wearing Adidas Copa Mundial, World Cup or Puma King for the last 25 years. This season the club I play in every week changed from the natural pitch to synthetic grass. I bought a pair of Adidas Predators Power Swerve HG with small studs specially for turf and they really feel different, great. To tell the trurth, I have never been a Nike fan in football boots, a lot of people I know have had knee injuries because of Nike’s studs configuration and shape. Even though Nike’s advertising and designs are very atractive, in football they are lightyears behind the leader in real functionality. Keep working maybe some day you will get closer to adidas.
These boots seem sweet bu tlike you said, a .10% difference in weight is not going to give the average player that much more of an edge.By the way I am curious to see how long these cleats last, considering that some of the other Nike flywire products have been known to come apart. From my personal experience, the Nike Hyperdunk basketball shoe, which was equivalent to the Superfly for basketball, came apart after 4 months. when I say came apart, I mean the wires became exposed and popped out of place. I am interested to see if these do the same thing.
Good article.
I bought a pair of the Orange Vapors earlier in the year, not paying VAT in the Channel Islands the price was certainly easier to swallow!
I’ve used them for a season of touch rugby and towards the end of season I noticed the carbon fibre plate had split across the width of the sole. Granted I don’t play on nice supple grounds all the time however I did expect them to last more than a season.
If I buy a new pair I might record how many hours worth of use I get from them before they break!
I don’t get all the animosity towards Nike and how they advertise their products. You talk about how the weight is a just a small difference from a boot that advertises nothing about its weight. When it comes down to it though, every little bit matters. If you run with 20 kilos on your back, you will be slower than if you run with 19, so why wouldn’t they let you know where their boot is better than the rest? None of the other boot brands receive treatment like this, not even adidas who, with their tunit, made 32 country specific uppers for sale during the WC2006. 10 MV IV colors in a year and its blasphemy, 32 in a little over a month and nothing is said of it? All brands have their shoes each with their own perks, and to sell them they are going to let you know each little detail and how it can make a difference, don’t just pick on one company for doing it better than all the others.
Hey Mister Broom – hear what you are saying but just to pick you up on a couple of things.
As per your example, the difference between 19 kilos and 20 kilos is 5%. That’s a tangible amount. Less than half of 1%, to the average player, isn’t.
As for Adidas releasing 32 colourways for the World Cup – they did, but they told us they were going to do it at the outset so we could make an imformed choice.
When Nike released the first MV IV, I don’t remember them telling me that 9 others would be out within a year.
Big difference.
As for having a bash at Nike – they’re all big boys – they’ll cope.
I think these boots look awesome and as I play on the left/right wing they would be ideal for me. 185g is immense but the price is a joke, I bet it costs about Ă‚£20 to produce. Anyways i will probably get them cheaper on eBay or something, if not get the Vapor 5 which pretty much just as good. Anyone know how much the V’s weigh? Thanks!
230g i think
woah, Oh Kay… cool it… I think the article is trying to give a different pov. If you guys who like the boots dont like it, read the super nice coverage abt the Old Trafford launch that has all the technical details of the Nike boots.
I personally would prefer T90 or Predators, but I do fancy the new adipures.
The Puma V1.815 Ferrari’s are lighter than the superflys, 5.8oz compared to the superflys 6.8oz
does anyone know when the all black with the gold nike symbol is coming out to sale?
I’m buying my very first pair of football boots and I’m planning to buy the Nike Mercurial Vapor Veloci V and I just wanna ask if the mercurial boot last long? Does it rip easily? Because I don’t want to waste my money.
I totally agree with Kevin. If I buy re Mercurial Vapor Superfly, am I getting my moneys worth, because I want them to last a gosh darn long time, compared to my MV IV Citron which lasted me 7 months of non stop play.
Be carefull with all these new sole studs they are designed too sharpie and they can drive you easely to a knee injury