Adidas are winning rugby’s battle of the boot these days, writes Tim Cronin from RugbyShirts.net
As Puma set about drastically down-scaling their involvement in Northern Hemisphere rugby we're starting to see the individual contracts of key players expiring, with Jamie Heaslip the first to break all ties with the German apparel manufacturer.
Heaslip was one of the companies' marquee names, having been the poster-boy for the Puma EvoSpeeds when they were released. Along with Tommy Bowe and Luke Fitzgerald, Heaslip's individual deal with Puma reportedly stretched to five figures.
The marketability of Heaslip was reiterated last month when he was the first rugby player to sport a new colourway of the Nike Vapor IX. While a number of prominent backs had sported the flamboyant 'Fireberry' and 'Sunset' versions of this boot it was Heaslip that Nike chose as the first to introduce the more subtle 'Platinum' colourway to the world, hinting at a significant deal with the Irish loose-forward.
While both Fitzgerald and Bowe are still wearing their Pumas it will be interesting to see which companies court them when their deal ends, and where the other European nations' stars head when their Puma deals wrap up.
It's almost as if the default boot of world rugby at the moment is adidas, and if a player is not specifically target by another major company they end up accepting a place in adidas' bulging ranks. Even Manu Tuilagi has moved to adidas, sporting the latest 'speed boot', the RS7 III, in the Six Nations this year.
In the Southern Hemisphere the adidas dominance is perhaps even wider reaching. While a few prominent players are signed to Nike, and even fewer to Mizuno, Asics and the rest, the vast majority of players in this year's Super XV are sporting three stripes on their boots. In New Zealand this has much to do with adidas' deal with the NZRFU, which forces all players without individual boot deals with other companies to wear adidas boots when representing any of the five New Zealand Super Rugby franchises, and also when playing in the ITM Cup, the counties' provincial championship.
In this year's Super XV the outside backs are primarily wearing the RS7 III, including Israel Dagg, JP Pietersen and Digby Ioane, while almost all the key inside backs, such as Dan Carter, Aaron Cruden, Will Genia and Patrick Lambie are seen in the adidas Predator Incurza.
In the forwards adidas have just released the FF80, a boot specifically designed for loosies, and this will be a highly popular choice in the coming months. Easily the most common boot for tight forwards at the moment is another adidas boot, the Kakari, which is already worn by Richie Grey and Rory Best, along with the entire All Black tight-five.
Puma had a large market presence in the UK, and their withdrawal will mean a host of players will soon be clamouring for the limited number of lucrative individual sponsorship deals on offer, with the rest almost certainly likely to follow the flock and join Team adidas.
Tim Cronin is a Rugby fan and full time writer based in the rubble of the Canterbury Crusaders’ home town, Christchurch. Tim is a part of the Pukeko Sportsteam, where his role is watching, writing, and complaining about all things rugby.
