Nike AG Plate Collection - Football News

More and more games are now being played on artificial grass, from the Champions League to amateur sides trying to beat waterlogged pitches. The small sided game as well as training sessions are often played on astro turf with 3g and 4g pitches offering the perfect playing surface in all weather conditions.

Players can often be caught in two minds whether to wear FG boots or trainers when lacing up on 'plastic pitches'. Nike have solved the problem by releasing AG versions of all their top end silos, whereas other brands only produce AG versions of their take-down boots. The CTR, HyperVenom, Tiempo and Mercurial have each been modified with an AG specific solplate fit for playing on all weather pitches.





If your wear FG, especially blades, you risk rolling your ankle or slipping as your studs aren't actually going into the ground. AG sole plates are designed for exactly that, artificial grass. There are more studs, 24 rubber ones to be precise (along with a few secondary studs) on the CTR & Tiempo, 23 on the HyperVenom and 19 on the Mercurial, evenly distributing pressure and sinking into the surface rather than skating on top of it.

Clubs in England including QPR and Preston used artificial pitches on their home grounds before they were abolished in 1988 because of safety fears and to be fair if you made a sliding tackle on those it was like doing a knee slide on a giant cheese grater, painful.

Since then the technology in artificial surfaces has advanced at some speed, gone are the days of ripped knees on sand paper like surfaces, they're now safe and offer an almost exact same ball bounce to grass and more importantly you're weekend plans can never be ruined by the weather. It's always game on.





A number of top-flight clubs in Italy, France, Holland, Switzerland and Russia now play on artificial pitches as well as several lower-division sides in Scotland who, once installed, reap the benefits of saving money on pitch repairs and avoid fixture pile ups in harsh weather. These hi-tech pitches are approved by FIFA, while UEFA allows Champions League ties to be played on artificial surfaces.

The Nike AG plates pack a cool distinctive look, colourful and for lack of a better word, funky. They've got the customised vibe going on created by the same top end upper sat on a modified sole. With competitive football frequently played on artificial surfaces the demand for AG boots has never been higher and Nike are producing the goods.

Have you tried any of Nike's AG sole plates? Let us know. Join the conversation online, on Twitter and on Facebook.