Following the dramatic conclusions to Europe's top leagues, there is little time for football's top brands to sit back and reflect. With EC12 on the horizon, it's time for Nike, adidas and Puma to raise their game. There's an expectancy from Nike to do something different, and once again they've stepped up to the challenge with the launch of the 'Nike Clash Collection'.
For the last few major tournaments we've seen Nike's World Cup Elite pack and their black leather EC08 boots, to unify their players on pitch. Now, to celebrate what promises to be an exciting summer of football, the ‘Nike Clash Collection’ will be worn by some of the world’s best players including Ronaldo, Iniesta & Rooney.
The individual boots are sparked by specific colour, finished with a white toe upper to create a distinctive yet common theme across the collection. Each chosen colour reflects the expression and playing style of each boot, with the T90 Laser IV line being brought to life in an eye-popping green.
“The clash of traditional white with very modern and youthful colours will make a really powerful and disruptive statement on pitch,” said Andrew Caine, Nike Global Creative Director for Football Footwear. “The Nike Clash Collection delivers highly engineered boots with sharp colour contrast reflecting the clash of rivalries and competition we will see this summer. We’re celebrating that with distinctive and stand out colour.”
With lead T90 athlete and England striker Wayne Rooney suspended for the opening group games, Nike will be counting on other Laser IV representatives to create some headlines for the new White/Green Clash colourway. Poland striker Robert Lewandowski will be one of the lead players for the silo throughout the Championships, alongside Dutch midfielder Wesley Sneijder and Spain's Fernando Torres.
Importantly the latest T90 Laser IV release will be made available in both a FG and SG Pro-Plate. The traditional TPU stud arrangement of the FG plate will sit alongside the newly introduced Pro-Plate edition, that combines both a six-stud soft ground stud configuration with moulded blades across the heel and forefoot. The mixed plate was first made available in the Vapor VIII, but is now being rolled out across certain Nike silos.
For the upper, Nike have chosen their Kanga-Lite material in place of a synthetic alternative. The leather-like material has performed well since its introduction to the CTR range and has received a strong player uptake over the past year, giving Nike the confidence to make the White/Green colourway another KL exclusive.
Each four boots of the Nike Clash Collection feature a subtle reference to their respective colourway. The digital colour codes have been discreetly printed onto the heel and outsole area of each boot, and is something you'd expect to see on an early sample edition!
The Nike Clash Collection will make their on-field debuts in the Champions League final, with Chelsea and Bayern Munich Nike players given exclusive access ahead of the headline summer tournament. You will be available to pre-order the boots from May 14 with the T90 Laser IV retailing for around £140 GBP / $200 USD / €160 EURO.
Now you've had your SoccerBible first-look at the new 'Clash Collection' Nike T90 Laser IV football boots, let us know what you think! Share your thoughts with the SoccerBible community online, on Twitter and on Facebook.
