The Making of an Olympic Soccer Boot

By Phil Hecken

As we continue our Olympics coverage her on Uni Watch, we go a bit “off uni” to take a look at the making of a specific piece of equipment — a soccer shoe, or football boot, or whatever you want to call it. And I’m pleased to have a wonderful, in-depth piece by Tim Newcomb. The genesis of this piece actually started with the following E-mail exchange:

I was in Italy earlier this month covering the launch of Nike’s new Green Speed soccer boot, which will debut at the Olympics. While Nike obviously did up the event, as you know having also attended these things, they did take us to a factory in Montebelluna, outside Venice, where they hand make all these shoes, and all of the soccer shoes, for their “elite” athletes. I took notes and photos while I was in the factory and was thinking this could be a fresh take Olympics-time post for Uni Watch, looking at the process of handcrafting these shoes, complete with wax molds of all the athletes’ feet to use as templates. Are you interested?

The answer was a resounding “yes,” and that led Tim to filing the following piece:

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Handcrafting a Nike Olympic Soccer Boot in Italy
By Tim Newcomb

MONTEBELLUNA, Italy ”” Tucked into a nondescript business park in this small town about 60 kilometers northwest of Venice sits a grayish building with a small swoosh out front floating above a flowerbed. In atypical Nike fashion, the Montebelluna Research and Development Center is understated. But the work that goes on inside? You see that on every Nike-sponsored soccer player in the world, including during the London games as Nike debuts the sustainably minded Green Speed soccer boot, as worn by Brazilian star Neymar.

All of Nike’s elite athletes get special treatment, including having their boots handmade inside the Italian center, crafted specifically for them and the exact shape of their feet. The Green Speed isn’t any different in that respect, but it does signify a new concept for Nike in high-performance soccer cleats with a merging of ultra-performance and sustainable materials.

The new shoe, Nike’s lightest soccer boot ever at 5.64 ounces (on par with the lightest in the world) includes new materials that not only helped Andy Caine, Nike’s creative director for soccer and the designer of the Green Speed, go “considered,” but also increase performance. “We reduced things down,” Caine says, “but the performance is still amplified.”

Nike replaced petroleum products with castor bean and palm oils, used recycled or renewable products when possible and added in new plant fibers, a first. The spine plate, an asymmetrical design that mimics the foot and cut away plastic for a 15 percent lighter piece, is 50 percent castor bean oil and 50 percent renewable materials; the quarter, tongue and laces are mostly woven from recycled plastic bottles; kenaf-plant fibers create the toe board and shoe’s collar; water-based synthetic kangaroo removes chemicals; all glues come chemical-free; the overall sleeker design (the heel counter was moved to the outside to reduce padding and glues) cuts waste and product; and local Italian vendors and suppliers create a low-impact production process.

As Nike unveiled the Green Speed earlier this month in Venice, I was able to watch the process of Italian workers””wearing the coolest polo shirts with a small shoe logo””making the boot in the factory, taking all the reduced components and building the Green Speed. With a tour by Matteo Tessaro and Roberto DeMarchi, under the direction of U.S.-born factory director Ken Shaprio, the process starts with a piece of synthetic kangaroo leather cut into a single piece, reducing stitching needs.

The second step actually includes weaving the laces into the boot, pulling together the top of the shoe. From there, the single piece is stitched at the bottom and heel into a shape that, for the first time, resembles a foot.

That loose-fitting piece is heated up to encourage movement of the materials then wrapped over each player’s specific foot mold, as kept on shelves in the 15-person factory that can produce up to 600 pairs of shoes a day.

The toe board is glued to the upper (the upper has no fabric on the underside of the front portion of the foot) and then using one of about 20 machines in the plant””many specifically designed for Nike’s Italy factory””the shoe, with the toe board, gets pulled and tightened around the mold. The laces are continually tightened here too, pulling the shoe into an exact shape.

Before the shoe’s upper accepts any glue, the boot gets a full clean and even a hand massage to open the pores for better acceptance of the water-based cement. Once ready, a machine helps sand down the shoe at the plate and heel counter connection points.

Workers then mark out exactly where the heel counter gets attached and, after taping an outline of the section, apply water-based cement to both the plastic piece and the shoe. Once the glue is on and the tape is removed, the workers have one shot””this cement is supremely sticky, after all””to place the two pieces together. The spine of the shoe (the plate) gets the same treatment next.

The cement needs about 45 minutes of dry time before entering a heated compression machine that not only uses the warmth to fully activate the cement, but twice the normal pressure to ensure a tight bond. Not wanting to mess with curing times, the shoe then typically sits for a day.

With all the pieces in place, the shoe, still wrapped over the mold, travels a pizza-style conveyer belt for 10 minutes and comes out at minus-20 degrees Celsius, completely frozen and fully cementing all components in place. The shoe again waits overnight.

The final process includes removing the mold, inserting the one-piece sock liner and a final buffing to clean the shoe (hey, they even toss in the crumpled paper at this point to the front of the shoe to help it hold its form).

Since each shoe has a specific destination, workers will embroider the name of the player on the shoe and, using glue, adhere the player’s chosen country flag to the boot, giving it a fully personal look.

After boxing the shoe, the boot gets shipped straight from Italy to the player.

Tim Newcomb is a regular contributor for Time, Sports Illustrated, Popular Mechanics, Dwell and other publications. You can follow him on Twitter at @tdnewcomb.

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Thanks Tim!

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More Olympics:

This new section will feature updates, lesser news, and reader submissions from the XXXth Olympiad — keep the Olympic news coming in! (Usually in the order in which I receive them — think of it as an “Olympics Ticker”.)

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More observations from Uni Watch faithful:

* “Pau has ‘Gasol’ on his back while bro Marc (who he was traded for, a few years back) is the only one on Espana with FNOB.” (Pete Clark)

* “Just wondering about your thoughts on the American flags that are on the right side of some of the US swimmer’s caps. As Uni Watch has pointed out to me in the past, the American flag is always supposed to have its stars facing forward. “Always advancing, never retreating” is the phrase that has stuck in my mind over the years. It came to my attention on your website when people were up in arms during the World Baseball Classic that the flags on the uniform were backwards. As it turns out, they had it right according to the military guidelines. So that leads me to my question of why some of the swimmer’s caps seems to have the flag image backward. To the average viewer, these flags seem to be correct. However, not all of the caps have the stars facing forward. Missy Franklin is the one that comes to mind for me. Any idea why this is the case? You would think that if some take the flag guidelines that seriously for the WBC, that during the Olympics (a far larger stage) the uniform designers would be pay even closer attention to detail, no? For what it’s worth, not all US swimmers are committing this heinous act of treason. Many of the men only have their flags on the left side of their head which does not yield the same problem as in that situation the stars are in fact facing forward.” (Scott Lederer)

* “This year’s games have burned with a fire so bright, it’s like it’s not even there.” (Terry Duroncelet)

* “I’m shocked that Uni Watch hasn’t noticed that every Adidas-sponsored soccer team in the Olympics, doesnt have the signature three stripes of the brand. Thought that would have surely made the ticker.” (Patrick O’Neil)

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“Benchies” first appeared at U-W in 2008, and has been a Saturday & Sunday feature here for the past two years.

. . . . .

Well, okay, but nobody—repeat, NOBODY—wants a tighty whitie sighting…

Click to enlarge

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#NoUniAds Campaign…Day 13

This will be a regular feature on Uni Watch until the NBA rescinds its incredibly offensive and stupid proposal to place corporate advertising on uniforms.

And now, a personal note from Paul:

It’s important that we keep making our voices heard: Call the NBA’s publicly listed phone number (212-407-8000), ask for Adam Silver’s and/or David Stern’s office), e-mail deputy commissioner Adam Silver at his his publicly listed address (asilver@nba.com), and tweet to @NBA with the hashtag #NoUniAds. Do it now.

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More of your letters to the NBA, including some responses back to “Chelsea” after her form response:

You’ll recall “Chelsea’s” form response:

Dear {insert name here}: Thank you for contacting the National Basketball Association to express your opposition to the idea of placing sponsor logos on jerseys. We understand your strong feelings on this issue and appreciate hearing from you. Our fans are extremely important to us, and we value what you have to say. The NBA and its teams continue to evaluate the opportunity to add corporate branding to game jerseys. Jersey sponsorship is a well-established practice in sports leagues around the world. It is also not a new concept in American sports. NASCAR, Major League Soccer, professional golf, the WNBA, and the NBA Development League all feature sponsored uniforms. The NBA is a global sports league; fans connect with our game in more than 200 countries and territories. As much as we value our traditions, the NBA also realizes that we, along with the rest of the world, need to change and adapt in order to remain competitive in a global marketplace. Thank you again for sharing your feedback. We truly appreciate the passion you demonstrate for the NBA. Your feedback helps us as we work to enhance all aspects of our league. Sincerely, Chelsea NBA Fan Relations

Coleman Mullins:

“Chelsea”,

While I do thank you for your prompt reply, I do take issue with part of it.

“NASCAR, Major League Soccer, professional golf, the WNBA, and the NBA Development League all feature sponsored uniforms.”

Let me tackle these one at a time if I may. I apologize if any of this comes off a little sarcastic or rude, but, well, a point needs to be made that we as fans are not as dumb and easy to push over as the NBA seems to think.
Firstly, NASCAR: this association should not be included in the conversation. It, along with others you have mentioned and that I will address individually, is a sport where the athletes competing have NO home track, stadium, field, etc. NASCAR drivers and teams are responsible for their own revenue.

Second, MLS: I am an even bigger fan of the MLS than I am of the NBA by far. What you fail to realize, apparently, is that the fan base, while growing by leaps and bounds, is nowhere near comparable to the NBA fan base. MLS also does not have commercial breaks. Soccer matches are pretty much 90 minutes of action, take away injuries and halftime. There are no convenient breaks every 3 or 4 minutes to go to “a word from our sponsors”. Comparing your association to the MLS is ridiculous and you, or whoever put out what I imagine to be a generic, mass reply to the thousands of emails you have received on this topic, should know better.

Professional Golf: see Nascar. As much as I hate to see sponsors/advertising on golfer’s “uniforms”, its at least a little more understandable here.

WNBA: … You’re kidding me, right? They still exist?

Lastly, NBA’s D-League: Um, yeah. I’ve seen about 30 seconds of a D-league game. Ever. And that was on SportsCenter.

I know this email may seem long winded to you, but you must realize that we, as fans, are your bread and butter. Companies won’t pay for a 2.5 x 2.5 inch ad on a jersey that A) no one is buying or B) no one tunes in to see on television. I may be just one fan, but there are many more just like me. We matter, remember that.

Respectfully,
Coleman W. Mullins

Joseph Biskey:

This is not jersey sponsorship, it is advertising. NASCAR is not a sport, MLS is not one of the big four, individual golf players need the money to make it from event to event, and I am not going to even comment on the WNBA or the developmental league. If you want to compare your league to a small league, that is fine; however, I do not purchase products or support the smaller leagues, and I will treat the NBA as such. I guess the major four sports leagues are down to three.

I am happy the NBA has become a global league that has forgotten who buys tickets to their games. You have indeed saved my family and I a lot of money with your choice to worry about global sales as opposed to the people that grew your sport to where you could market it globally.

Michael Hall:

Dear Chelsea,

If I read this correctly, what you are saying is that you value greed over tradition. That is really a shame.

The sports fan is a sucker that continues to be exploited until we are all chased away.

Congratulations, I am done. Consider me chased away…

Thanks for the forum and good luck hanging out with Nascar and the D-league in popularity…

Sincerly,
Michael

Thanks for keeping the faith readers! We can stop the NBA if we can keep up the pressure.

#NoUniAds!

Thanks to Tim E. O’Brien and Chris Giorgio for the image in the upper right of this section!

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Uni Watch News Ticker: Looks like Arkansas State University football will sport new jerseys this fall to go with new head coach Gus Mahlzan. This was tweeted by Red Wolves tight end Anthony Kincy (and sent to UW by Larz G. Roberts). … Jordon Woodson notes, “Dijana Kunovac of Inside Carolina (the Scout site for UNC athletics) has been doing run downs of the Carolina football equipment room/manager/process. Pretty interesting videos. Discussion of new jerseys, the timeline with new coaching staff, etc. Helmets & Locker Room Prep.” … Jim Vilk’s new bestest friend, Kevin Brown says, “Angola’s women’s basketball team is using the most boring font ever on their unis at the Olympics. It appears to be Times New Roman: Front & Back.” I, on the other hand, think they’re just understated. … Rich Drummond was taking a look at some Eagles training camp pic and came across this. “I noticed Vick has changed to the Air XP.” That’s a helmet, right? … Andy Bergmann just wanted to let us know that the Evolution of Ball Kickstarter project has 20 days left. “I got a lot of really nice feeback from your users on the original graphic, so they might be interested in the screen prints.” … Used hockey sweaters have become a status symbol among the poor. No, really. Here’s the dish (thanks to Alan Kreit). This is pretty interesting, according to Chester Baker. “This is Tottenham’s, who recently partnered with Under Armour, equipment truck,” he says. Note that there is no logo for the manufacturer of the cab, only the brand of the company. It’s no Nike tank, but still. … I’m assuming he meant this sarcastically, but Tim E. O’Brien writes, “What the nation wants: More Hoosier Football News — Added B1G patch and stoopid collar shit.” … Christopher Bisbee observes that the Air Force has a uni-related problem with their F22 pilots and being able to breathe. … Mark Magowan wryly notes, “This is a screencap from MiLB.TV of Columbus Clipper Roberto Hernandez (or as you may remember him, Fausto Carmona) with the bar code sticker still under the brim. He also had the hologram sticker left on, but I couldn’t grab a good angle quick enough. Turns out this was his first start with this club, as he only pitched in one game in A-ball then got called up to AAA.” In a related story, Eric Davis writes, “Just a quick t-shirt design I did for the return of Fausto Carmona Roberto Hernandez of the Cleveland Indians.” … Chris Willis (among others) explains that the clear plastic shit on helmets is “called “Gouge Guards”…The decal is a 12 mil thick clear protective layer used by teams to help cut down on the scarring of the front of helmets, especially linemen, mostly during camp.” Michael McIntosh also observed this and informs us the Ravens use them as well during training camp and preseason games … More from Alan Kreit: Brad Richard’s dad’s goalie mask. … A reader who goes by “Sunsplash7777” found this vintage NFL (New York Giants) iron on. … Chris Mahr notes “UNC and Charlotte Football Both Unveil All-White Helmets” on the Lost Lettermen. … Couple uni-related comic book finds from Ricko — “Dream Team?” and “Bob Feller does the comics.” … “Such a deal,” writes Gary Moore. “As found at Dodgers’ Clubhouse store at Universal Studios CitiWalk. (yes, I grabbed it)” What’s it? A $5 pair of LA Dodgers stirrups. … Jason Natter was at the Nationals vs. Brewers game at Miller Park on Sunday, and noticed some quirky shit. Bryce Harper started the game with high socks and later was wearing long pants. He also went up to bat without batting gloves one time while wearing them the rest of his ABs. Strangely, he was wearing Roger Bernadina’s #2 helmet. … Michael Sullivan “went to Bills training camp Sunday night. I had a few uni related observations. Especially #3, #28, and #34.” … Yesterday the Philllies jettisoned 2 outfielders. Marc Bauche was on top of it: “In their article covering Hunter Pence’s trade from the Phillies to the Giants today, MLB Trade Rumors.com linked to this photo of Pence. I love how it looks like his jersey has 3 Ls. PhiLLLies. Only Hunter Pence.” … Kenny Ocker says, “Apparently, the Royals bought uniforms with taxpayer dollars in 2008.” … Is the white helmet the new BFBS uni? Hunter Towns notes the white helmet UNC will be wearing as a one-off sometime this season. That sound you just heard was THE Jeff punching a wall.

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That’s it for this fine first Day of August. Happy 70th Jerry. Nothin’ left to do but smile smile smile. And RIP Eugene Luther.

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“When I was a kid, I competed in an Ocean Champion brief, which gave way to the teensier Speedo of the 1970s, which I adopted as the norm for recreational swimming as I aged, and I gotta say, aging recreational swimmers in Speedo briefs don’t always present themselves in a flattering light.”

–Conn Nugent