Milestones – Adidas Predator Powerswerve 2008

Regarded by many as the last proper Adidas Predator made. So what did Adidas change to make the PredatorPowerswerve so good?

Let`s start with the fact that Steven Gerrard said that the Predator Powerswerve was his favorite ever in the Predator range, that says quite lot about the boot. Adidas did also change the original rubber fins to “Predator SMART Foam” to give extra power and swerve. The soft foam reacts to the impact and kind of bounces back the effect straight to the ball.

Adidas did also create a “Power Pulse” system in the innersoles, by adding a chamber to the innersole filled with 30g metallic powder. So when kicking the ball the powder shifts forward in the chamber which increases the power. Adidas proved this in tests and the boot was said to create 3% more force and 8% more swerve than the Predators before. This popular boot was released in 2008 and there were more than 20 different colors available. Biggest stars to wear these were Steven Gerrard, David Beckham, Michael Ballack and Daniele De Rossi.

Thank you for reading. More to come as always 😉

Milestones – Adidas Predator Mania 2002

After the Accelerator in 1998 Adidas released Predator Precision in 2000, but they never got the same level as previous model did. So in 2002 Adidas released Predator Mania, which made its debut alongside FIFA World Cup Japan & South Korea. Also everyone remembers Zinedine
Zidane scoring that volley goal in Champions League against Leverkusen. Other big names using Mania was Beckham, Raul, Del Piero etc.  

The boot itself was made in kangaroo leather upper and of course Predator rubber fins to give the ball an extra curve. Adidas made the Mania with far eastern style in mind, which opened new markets in for example Asia. Adidas also added a rubber strap to keep the big red tongue in
place and used a two piece soleplate that reduced the weight. This is a boot that will stay in Adidas history and won’t be forgotten.

Also there was released a big bunch of different colour options!

Thank you for reading!

Milestones – Adidas Predator Accelerator

It is still regarded as one of the best boots Adidas ever produced. The Predator Accelerator was released in 1998 along with the FIFA world cup in France. The boot was advertised by some of the greatest players like Zidane and David Beckham. France won Brazil 3-0 and Zizou scored twice! 

This boot featured a re-engineered TRX outsole, asymmetrical lacing for larger striking surface, the rubber fins sewn into the leather gives a swerve when hits the ball. The boot’s weight about 300 grams and consists of several layers of high quality leather. Also in my opinion one of the few Predators that have a non-clumsy feeling when played in.

Adidas released this boot in four colours: Black/white/red, white/black/red, red/black/white and in a limited edition colourway called Electricity yellow.

Milestones – Adidas Predator 1994

The original Adidas Predator released in 1994 was revolutionary in the way it managed to add power and swerve to the kick thanks to the rubber fins!

It was Craig Johnston back in 1988, footballer from Australia, who was the key man developing the first Predator. It was his idea to add the rubber fins, he compared it to table-tennis.

These boots became Adidas biggest revolution in the history of football boots!

Thank you for reading and next Milestone will be published soon.

Adidas Predator 1994 Fg

The original Adidas Predator released in 1994 was revolutionary in the way it managed to add
power and swerve to the kick thanks to the rubber fins!

It was Craig Johnston back in 1988, footballer from Australia, who was the key man developing
the first Predator. It was his idea to add the rubber fins, he compared it to table-tennis!

These boots became Adidas biggest revolution in history of football boots!

Thank you for reading and stay tuned I will soon write about the “Milestones in football boot history”.

SALE!

Following boots are for sale:

• Adidas Predator Precision Sg custom painted 9uk 9.5us 43 1/3eu, 9/10.  Price: 120£+shipping
• Adidas F50+ Sg 10uk 10.5us 44 2/3eu, 9/10                                                     Price: 130£+shipping
• Nike Tiempo Air Legend Fg 7uk 8us 41eu, 9/10                                           Price: 60£+shipping

PayPal accepted!

Message me: toffem@outlook.com

Nike or Adidas?

This is an endless battle between two very succesfull sport brands! We all loved the old school Nike Mercurials and Adidas Predators. I have to admit that I gave up my hope sligthly with Adidas when they announced in 2014 that they would stop making Predator and F50… 

Nike continued strongly with developing the Mercurial range and also creating two new models Magista and Hypervenom. For me the new Mercurial Superfly V, Hypervenom Phantom III & Magista Obra II are one of the best boots Nike have produced in the last years! As I have been wearing Mercurial for most time of my career, I’m happy to see that they are developing the boots all the time.

If the years 2014-2015 were a slight dissapointment from Adidas then they really pushed up things in 2016! Some great boots as the Ace16+ PureControl with laceless technology and X16+ PureAgility to battle as a speed boot against Mercurial!

So both brands are once again seriously compeating of providing players with the best boot options! This is important as competition is the only way to improve your own products.

Adidas Predator Mania Sg – Rugby Edition

Got these few days ago, certainly one of the rarest boots I come across in the past years! The boots are Adidas Predator Mania SG, with the screw in stud pattern. These are Rugby edition football boots and worn by Olly Barkley. 

(Picture by: gettyimages.co.nz, David Rogers)

Barkley plays as fly-half at London Welsh. Fun fact about Barkley is that he played for his country before making his actual debut at Bath Rugby team.

There is few things that makes these boots very sought after:

• The rubber fins on the tongue instead of stiched Adidas stripes
• They are made in Germany
• There is more stiching around the upper

I think Adidas should have added the extra rubber stripes on the tongue on the retail version as well. Such a cool looking boot!

Adidas Predator Mania Remake 2017

This boot was the main subject everyone talked about this week, the Predator Mania remake from the Adidas “Champagne Pack”. They were released the 3rd of May. I tired to buy a pair but again, third time a row with limited releases, didn’t manage to get to buy s pair… The boots was released at Adidas websitenaround 8.00 GMT and I queued 50 minutes until it said “Sold Out”. Then I got a new chance on Pro-Direct Soccer around 9.02 GMT and added a pair to my basket and paid, I were not over thrilled as I had been in the same situation many times 😛 6 hours later I get a mail from Pro-Direct Soccer saying “Sorry you missed out”… Nothing new here xD

As usually you find the boots on eBay, where people trying to sell the same boots that were released few hours ago, asking for a good profit ofcourse. Some of them will sell for a high price and some will probably end selling for closer to the retail price in few months. 

To cheer up a bit I took the time to photoshoot the original Adidas Predators with the real tongues! 

From the first Adidas Predator Rapier 1995 with folded tongue, ending with the Adidas Predator Powerswerve in 2008-2009.

Few of my favourites in the past years:

Adidas Predator Accelerator Sg, 1998 (Made in Germany with 8 studded soleplate)

Adidas Predator Mania Sg, 2002 (Made in Germany)

Adidas Predator Precision Sg, 2000 (Made in Germany and worn by Abelardo as central defender in Barcelona)

Adidas Predator Accelerator Sg “Made in Germany”!

My newest addition to the collection. Definitely one of the rarest Adidas Predator boots ever made, measured to meet the players foot size with high quality leather. The boots are made in Germany, public ones are made in Indonesia. 

Compared to the public releases these boots got a softer and thinner leather with more stiching, making them slightly lighter and stronger. Adidas also added a rubber strap to keep the tongue on place. Also the tongue is longer than normally and can be folded lower.

Most special thing about these are ofcourse the soleplate with 8 screw in studs, providing a better grip. 

Such a beautiful boot and really thankful for owning this pair in excellent condition!