One of the lightest boots to ever hit the market, the adidas F50 adizero, has seen some of the most appealing colorways in recent memory (of course omitting the dreadful world cup colorway). For my money, it doesn’t often get better than the black/orange or black/green colorways of past adizeros. That said, the electricity/infrared/anodized purple scheme shouldn’t be considered a throwaway; it can hold its own even among the most lauded schemes.
This colorway was released to coincide with the anodized purple/electricity/infrared color scheme, so they’re of course both vying for the hearts of adizero wearers everywhere. Factor in the white leather scheme, and you’ve got quite the competition between adizero boots. While not my favorite of the three, I still believe the electricity and infrared is a solid, appealing option fit for a lot of players out there.
The primary color for these boots is of course the electricity, which is basically a bright yellow-green, leaning more on the yellow side of things. The primary color is then complemented by purple and red accents, or “anodized” purple and “infrared,” respectively. The purple accents are realized through the pattern at the toes, the heel cup, sock liner, tongue and laces; the red accents come in the three stripes, tips of the studs and the smooth yet edgy lines moving from the toes to the mid-foot. The one criticism I’ve heard is that this looks a little like a Joker scheme from Batman. On the one hand, such criticism implies a comic book, cartoonish look to the soccer shoes, but on the other hand, it implies a kind of flair and a kind of unique style. As a speed boot, the adizero is almost required to have a flashy, loud element to them; this specific colorway takes flashy and loud to the limit and announces your feet on the pitch. While not my personal style, I still think these boots look great on the feet and will provide plenty of style for those who strap on a pair.
You can also expect the same design and quality construction out of this boot as you do any other adizero. The upper is made out of synthetic SprintSkin, which is a lot of the reason the adizero weighs in at a whopping 5.8 ounces. The chassis is the same sprintframe with molded traxion cleats strategically placed to provide proper bite in acceleration while keeping you stable and balanced. The boots come with two insole inserts—ultralight and comfort. They provide exactly what their name says, however there is no concern that the ultralight is uncomfortable or that the comfort is heavy. Both inserts provide excellent comfort without being cumbersome. If there’s to be concern in an area, then that concern rests with the tension points at the sides of the foot. These tension points cause the sprintskin upper to fold into a relatively small point, which invites stress and tearing. I should temper that statement by saying tearing has come up, but it isn’t a regular thing. It’s basically the same story as just about anything you buy—a fraction of users have an issue or problem with proper functionality, but the vast majority of users have no hang ups at all.
Despite the last point on tearing, I think you should be able to confidently purchase a pair of these bad boys without worrying about the quality of construction. The boots wouldn’t see update after update unless they were properly made and designed. Soccerpro has them listed for $159.99 right now, which is a deal, especially if you’re in the market for a speed boot.
Written by: Kris Dyer, contributing editor, soccerprose.com
