Best Players Missing the World Cup and What they Wear

Ethan Edwards May 4, 2014 Everything Else 3 Comments

The World Cup is considered to be the greatest gathering of countries at the national level. But some select players will have to miss out of the biggest stage in soccer. Whether it be because of injury or because their respective countries failed to qualify, these players will be missed. And with the World Cup under 2 months away, many players are facing a race against time to recover and be fit for their respective matches. So if any of the doubtful players end up missing the World Cup, their boots will also miss the games. And considering there are some big names such as Zlatan Ibrahimović, Gareth Bale, and Robert Lewandowski set to watch the World Cup from home, some companies may have to rethink their marketing campaigns. Although a player missing the World Cup will probably not drastically affect sales, it is still a good idea to see which boots and players will be absent.

Doubtful

Sami Khedira

Earlier in April, Sami Khedira returned to Real Madrid training after 5 months out because of torn knee ligaments. If he can prove that he is ready to play at the international level again by showing progress with Real Madrid, then I have no doubt that Khedira will be at the tournament. It has even been rumored that he could make a return in time for the Champions League final in Lisbon! Keep an eye out for Khedira and his boots, as he could end up in the Magista or any other boots because his current CTR360 Maestris are being discontinued.

Theo Walcott

Unfortunately, Arsenal’s forward Theo Walcott is likely to end up watching the World Cup at home. Right now, the pacey attacker may not even be fit for next season’s start. Walcott, who is yet to make a World Cup appearance, has said that he doesn’t want to rush the recovery to fitness to hopefully avoid further injury. To Nike, his exclusion will mean one of their fastest players missing out on the world stage. Walcott was used heavily in Nike’s campaign of the Green Speed 2 and has also played a part in the Mercurial Vapor and England Kit releases.

Radamel Falcao

The latest news of Radamel Falcao’s recovery will be that he will go to the World Cup, but may not be 100% fit come kick off. The Colombian Striker has been upbeat about his recovery and will hopefully be ready when Colombia faces Greece on June 14. It will be a big blow to Colombia if their star forward isn’t ready, but they seem to have a solid backup in Porto’s forward Jackson Martínez. Falcao has been a staple in Puma’s marketing campaign for the Evospeed 1.2 and he is arguably one of their top players. If he does end up missing part of the tournament, Puma will have to focus on their other star forward- Sergio Agüero.

Bryan Oviedo

Bryan Oviedo’s World Cup hopes were dashed earlier this season when he suffered a double leg fracture. Many feared his injury would prevent him from appearing at the tournament but the Costa Rican is actually ahead of schedule. Everton coach Roberto Martinez believes that the international will likely make a remarkable recovery in order to play this summer. Oviedo may not be one of the top Mercurial Vapor wearers, but his presence is heavily felt in Costa Rican games. Because he is one of their top players, Oviedo and his boots would play a big role in the campaign. I’m sure Nike would be happy to see his boots go center stage with Oviedo’s success in the World Cup.

Out

Zlatan Ibrahimović

It’s still hard to believe that the mighty Zlatan will not be traveling to Brazil this year for the World Cup. Sweden was eliminated in playoffs by Portugal and Cristano Ronaldo during qualifying. I’m sure Nike was happy that their superstar Ronaldo will go, but obviously they are disappointed that the eccentric and brilliant Zlatan will not. Thankfully, they have many other players wearing the Nike Mercurial Vapor at the tournament such as Ribery, Ronaldo, and others.

Also see – Nike Vapor Dilemma

Gareth Bale

Gareth Bale, the wearer of the F50 Crazylight, is another player that won’t be present in Brazil. Wales’ failure to qualify for the tournament is a big negative for adidas, as he is one of their star players. He is the sole wearer of the F50 Crazylight, so that could be one boot that doesn’t show up on tv screens this summer.

Robert Lewandowski

Polish international Lewandowski and his Hypervenoms will be a notable omission during the summer. The Borussia Dortmund striker that is set to leave for Bayern Munich has been on fire this season and has 18 goals so far. Basically, without him, the most notable player at the World Cup in Hypervenoms will be Neymar. Ideally, Neymar can do enough to help Brazil into the later stages of the tournament. But if Neymar and Brazil happen to exit early, Gonzalo Higuaín and Wayne Rooney could find themselves as the few big names left in the boots. Also, did anyone else notice that Lewandowski wasn’t in the Winner Stays commercial? Perhaps Nike decided to use Higuaín over him based solely on Lewandowski missing the World Cup. Or it could simply be another reason that kept Nike from using the in form striker in the commercial.

Petr Cech

The only goalkeeper on this list is Petr Cech. And his absence from the World Cup will be because Czech Republic failed to qualify, not because of his shoulder injury. Surprisingly, there have been rumors that Cech returned to training for Chelsea ahead of their Champions League second leg. I’m not sure if they are true but it will be interesting to see if the goalkeeper returns before the season’s finale. Cech wears the Adidas Predator LZ and also his own pair of adidas goalkeeper gloves. Thankfully for Adidas, they have many other shot stoppers wearing the Predator LZ such as Neuer and Casillas.