FT. Oct 1998. Football Boots
Despite the inflated salaries and outlawed
tackles, football today is tougher than ever. And in the desire
to win, players at all levels are turning to their football boots
for help.
The Australian footballer Craig Johnston is fondly remembered
by Liverpool supporters for his committed performances for the
team in the 1980s. But he made a wider contribution to the game
once his playing career had finished by coming up with the idea
of the Predator football boot. Johnston took his idea to the German
sports company, Adidas, and after much refinement and testing,
the Adidas Predator was launched in 1994.
The Predator boots feature a system of "fins and jets";
rubber patches on the forefoot of the boot which help players
both to take the ball under control, and to manipulate it more
accurately, applying swerve to shots and giving them extra control
when running with the ball.
"It's amazing to think that in the 40 years since the invention
of screw-in studs by Adidas in 1954, there had been no significant
innovations in football boots to enhance their performance before
the arrival of the Predator," says head of public relations
for Adidas in the UK, Steve Martin.
In 1996, Adidas refined the Predator with the introduction of
the Predator Touch, which featured a new outsole, the bottom of
the boot where the studs are housed. The Traxion outsole uses
rubber cleats instead of conventional conical studs, to reduce
discomfort to the sole of the foot and give the player more grip
and stability.
The boots received the best possible endorsement in the first
game of the 1996-97 English Premier League season, when Manchester
United's David Beckham, wearing a pair of Predators for the first
time, scored a memorable goal from the halfway line against Wimbledon.
The concept was further developed this year with the launch of
the Predator Accelerator, with refined rubber fins and jets and
Adidas's "Feet You Wear" concept, where the foot sits
naturally flat within the boot, rather than being angled in a
wedge shape, with the heel higher than the toe.
While Adidas says that its Traxion outsole is designed purely
to increase player comfort and improve performance, the British
sportswear company, Umbro, believes that the Spin-Rotation-Grip
(Spin-R-G) outsole on its new Velocita football boot can also
help reduce the number of rotation injuries caused to knees and
ankles.
The shape and positioning of the cleats on the outsole allows
the foot carrying the player's weight to pivot when the body twists,
either voluntarily or as a result of impact from another player.
In addition, the cleats present a greater base area, reducing
pressure on the sole of the foot.
"Lots of injuries are caused by the foot locking in the turf"
says Umbro UK public relations manager, Glen Littlewood. "The
design and shape of the studs on the Velocita is such that this
won't happen. In addition, the outsole flexes with the foot so
that the player can pivot and push away much more easily."
At the German sports goods manufacturer, Puma, the company has
borrowed "Puma Cell" technology, originally developed
for its running shoes, to improve the comfort and performance
of its football boots.
Puma's Cellerator GCI (Ground Control Injection) boot uses a hexagonal
arrangement of polyurethane elastomer cells in the outsole, which
makes the Cellerator the first football boot to incorporate cushioning
technology without creating a midsole.
The Cellerator GCI boot also features Puma's "Ground Control"
outsole, with rubber cleats instead of conventional moulded studs,
while the uppers are formed from Pittards 2000 leather, which,
Puma claims, retains much less water and is easier to maintain
than traditional kangaroo leather.
Puma Footwear business development manager, Mike Routledge, believes
outsoles like the one used on the Cellerator GCI and other boots
in the "Ground Control" range are gradually catching
on.
"The longer you can play in moulded studs, the better it
is for you" he says. "The cleats on the Ground Control
outsole are shaped in such a way that they are quick to go in
to the ground and easy to retract. They are good for turning but
they don't overgrip and lock in the turf. Players who want to
play longer at the highest level will play in moulded studs for
as long as possible and this type of outsole is becoming increasingly
accepted in the game."
But are these new-fangled studs just a manufacturers' fad, like
the multicoloured boots players have taken to wearing, or can
they really reduce the chances of sustaining a serious injury?
Eamonn Salmon, a chartered physiotherapist with Manchester City
for four years when the club were in the Premier League, and who
now has his own practice in Barrowford, Lancashire, believes they
might.
"The boot manufacturers face a constant battle between the
functionality of the boot and the desire to avoid injuries"
he says. "But when a stud or a spike fixes firmly into the
ground, weight is brought to bear on it and then you twist suddenly,
that's what causes all the damage to knees and ankles. If the
foot is less firmly fixed and can move with the rest of the leg,
the chances of suffering an injury should be reduced."
Whether a pair of Umbro Velocitas, Puma Cellerators or Adidas
Predators will help a pub team striker score goals like Michael
Owen, however, remains as yet unproven.