Soccer Cleats 101 Soccer Cleats News and Reviews
I had the pleasure of testing out the PUMA evoSPEED 1 cleats over the past few weekends. In honor of October being Breast Cancer Awareness Month, PUMA is helping raise awareness with yet another product through their Project Pink Campaign – an Azalea Pink version of the evoSPEED 1 cleats.
While I usually don’t sport “eccentric” cleats, breast cancer awareness gives both men and women an excuse to not be shy. I liked the overall aesthetic look of the cleats and was excited to try out the new ultra-light synthetic materials.
FIT: When first picking up the cleats, you might think they look a little stiff and not moldable (I definitely did), but I was pleasantly surprised by how comfortable they were and how they fit quite nicely to my feet. PUMA advertises the EVA insoles as new cushioned, light material, which I agree with after the first few tries.
PLAY: One of the first things I noticed was how light the cleats felt. Although a few extra ounces isn’t a game-changer, I did feel a little lighter on my feet. Afterwards, I read up that all of the materials are designed specifically for lightness while maintaining the main function of the cleat. The other most notable part of the cleat for me was the texture on the toe area and instep. In addition to the already sticky material, there is added grip for extra ball control. Not normally wearing shoes with anything like this, it took me a few times with the ball at my feet to get used to. I could tell this design did serve its purpose of keeping the ball on your feet, but you would have to get used to them to get the full benefit (which I think would be decent).
CONS: My only real complaint is that after wearing them twice, I did get a few blisters on the top of my toes, probably from the lack of initial stretch in the material. I think this would be quickly resolved with a few more times of breaking in the boots as they already started to mold to my feet.
You can currently find this Azalea Pink version of the evoSPEED 1.2 at Soccer.com.
Can we only buy the cleats at soccer.com or are there any other sites to get these cleats from?