Soccer or football as many know it, is the most followed game on this planet - to the extent that it is a religion to many. There are citizen who have taken the saying eat, drink and sleep to the next level, with regards to soccer. Well, you genuinely can't help it, as the game is just out of this world. The fascination and unblemished devotion to the game can be gauged from the fact that not only do we try to emulate a player's playing style, personal characteristics and total take to the game, we even know the brand of shoes that he is wearing. Maybe not everybody knows but this will turn that.
First of all, you should know the basics. What could the basics be in soccer shoes, you ask? The manufacturers, is the answer. There are many different types of soccer shoes out there, but what have remained constant over time are the makers. The major five include Puma, Lotto, Nike, Adidas and Reebok. While at a time, Puma and Lotto used to be all the rage, the resources that the others have poured into study fast turned the tide in their favour. After all, the shoes being produced nowadays are nothing less than products of science.
The shoe or studs, as they are known, that has taken the world by storm recently has been the Nike Mercurial Vapour Iv. This line was launched a few years ago and with time has emerged as one of the best ever soccer shoe. It is not a surprise that one of the best players at the moment, Portugal and Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, is an avid user of the Vapours. So is Chelsea's prolific Ivorian striker Didier Drogba, Ac Milan and Brazil's upcoming star send Alexandre Pato and Barcelona and Brazil right-back Dani Alves.
England and Manchester United send Wayne Rooney, Spain and Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos, Dutch centre-forward Jaan Klaas Huntelaar, Spain and Liverpool hit man Fernando Torres, Chelsea's French winger Florent Malouda and Arsenal's Brazilian youngster Denilson are all players belonging to the Nike Laser Ii T90 club.
Adidas, too, has its share of stars. Manchester United's Bulgarian send Dimitar Berbatov has never been spotted in whatever other than the Adidas Predator, as is the case with Liverpool and England's midfield dynamo Steven Gerrard. David Beckham, England's most noted winger, is a user too, along with Spain and Real Madrid legend Raul Gonzalez, German captain Michael Ballack, Spain's Marcos Senna and Arsenal's Dutch striker Robin Van Persie.
Adidas' other noted shoe line is the F50 and that also has its share of fans. Little Barcelona and Argentina genius Lionel Messi, Dutch winger Arjen Robben and his compatriot Dirk Kuyt, English striker Jermain Defoe, upcoming left-back Gareth Bale and Germany's Lukasz Podolski all wear the F50s.
As for Lotto, their major following is confined to Italy, with Inter Milan's Dejan Stankovic being a quarterly user. Portugal's Ricardo Quaresma is a user of Adidas' AdiPure, while England and Chelsea winger Joe Cole is a user of the Nike Air Legend line.
Soccer Shoes - Who Wears What?