Soccer Cleats 101 Soccer Cleats News and Reviews
We are always looking to find out about and share stories on interesting boots and brands from around the world. So, when our friend Andrew Lockhart got in touch with a images of Adler boots he picked up in Japan, we immediately wanted the scoop. Andrew was kind enough to give us some details on Adler brand and he filled us in on what their boots are all about. You can find Andrew on Twitter, @DerbyYank13.
“I often dig around foreign websites to look at different boot companies from around the world. Japanese companies are a particular favorite of mine. I found Adler on a website for a shop in the Harajuku district of Tokyo called Futaba Sports. I was in Tokyo last month so I decided to track the shop down. I am very happy I did!
The Adler Toledo (the Black/Red pair) has a kangaroo leather forefoot while the rest of the shoe is made up of calf leather. Adler has made very liberal use of padding throughout the shoe, most notably in the heel and underneath the tongue. Because of a combination of this and the leather, the boot is very soft to the touch and is extremely comfortable. The leather is thin but supportive and provides a fantastic touch on the ball. These boots are the most comfortable boots I have ever played in. The forefoot of the boot is cross-stitched so that the boot can stretch to the shape of the foot without over-stretching. Obviously the Adler Reggio (the White/Gold pair) shares some similarities as it’s brother boot, for example the use of Kangaroo leather in the forefoot and calf leather on the rest of the boot. The Reggio as has a similar amount of padding on the heel and tongue as well, again giving the boot a very comfortable fit. However, the forefoot of this boot has horizontal stitching similar to that of the Copa Mundial. The Reggio also has mesh in the tongue to allow the boot to breath more, which is very helpful in the Texas summer heat! The boot also has the company’s name stitched on the tongue, giving the boot a simple classic look.
All Adler boots are hand-made in Japan with company focusing on quality and comfort over style. Both boots have the uppers stitched to the outsole. The reason this is done is to improve the durability of the boot. This also allows the upper to form to the wearer’s foot better without having to worry about the upper splitting from the soleplate. Both boots have a very luxurious feel to them and the leather feels top notch…..they smell like a high end leather dress shoe! One of the problems that tends to occur in more classic boots is how hard the soleplate can feel on the bottom of the foot. Adler have solved this by adding a thinker insole to the boots, which extra padding being focused on the heel area. The soleplate is a classic layout but the studs get broader towards the soleplate, giving them an oval shape. In play they seem to provided more grip than what is usually found in a classic boot. One last this I should point out is something I found very interesting are the front two studs are both boots are at more of an angle than the other studs. It seems a little strange but in play they do have their use, particularly with controlling and grabbing the ball with the bottom of the boot and more importantly, for me at least, give a good bit more grip while I am sprinting. All in all I found these boots to be top quality.
Now cost. The Toledo normally goes for 9999 Yen (about $100 USD) but they were 10% off so I got them for around $90 USD. The Reggio normally retails for around 12,500 Yen (about $125 USD) but again these were marked down to about $100 USD.
Yes these boots are hard to get ahold of outside of the Land of the Rising Sun, but they are fantastic boots and I highly recommend them.”
Anyone worn or tested Adler boots before? If so, let us know what the experience was like in the comment section below!
