Development Of Cleats

Before 1800’s:-

England's King Henry VIII wardrobe discovered the first soccer cleats which were made by the King's personal shoemaker Cornelius Johnson in 1525.Their cost was 4 shillings at that time and the same cleats cost around 100$ now. The first cleats which were made were of ankle high and made of strong leather which was heavier than other shoes which people used to wear.

During 1800’s:-

Between 1500’s and 1800’s Football had become very popular in Great Britain which was not structured and which was not having any particular rules. Hence, it was played in a rough manner. Most of the games ended up with players bleeding and having broken bones to players. They used to wear their hard, leather, long laced work boots that were ankle high with a steel toe-cap. To have more grip on ground, villagers hammered metal tacks or studs on the bottom of their shoes during this time period. Soccer cleats shifted towards creating better designed and more comfortable style of cleats. Soccer boots weighted 500 grams and were made of hard and thick leather that went up the ankle for increased protection. These soccer cleats had 6 studs on the bottom of each shoe and during rainy weather soccer shoes would increase more than double in weight making them really heavy for the players wearing them.

Between 1900’s to 1940’s:-

The shoes remained the same and there was quite improvements in shoes, there was business started by the companies and the manufacturers of them. Gola (1905), Valsport (1920), Hummel (1923) were some of the companies that got started manufacturing soccer cleats during early 1900's. An interesting fact is that, two German brothers Adolf and Rudolf formed the Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik (Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory) in Herzogenaurach during 1924. They started producing soccer cleats in 1925 which had 6 or 7 replaceable studs. The studs could be changed according to the weather conditions and situations of the game. These were the first soccer shoes made with replaceable studs

During 1940’s to 1960’s:-

It was during this time that more flexible, comfortable and much lighter soccer cleats started to be made by new companies. World Cup was gaining popularity. Soccer boot production completely changed towards producing a lighter soccer cleats with the focus on kicking and controlling the soccer ball other than simply producing protective footwear to play. World recognized soccer cleats company Adidas and Puma were also formed during this time after the falling out between the two German brothers Adolf and Rudolf who had formed "Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory" in 1924. Adolf separated from his brother in the early 1940's staying in the original factory and renaming the company to "Adidas" while Rudolf went across river and created his own shoe factory, naming it "PUMA" in 1948. After opening new PUMA shoe factory, Rudolf produced Puma Atom soccer cleats. Puma was the first company to produce soccer cleats with interchangeable screw in studs made of plastic or rubber for the first time. Soccer cleats between 1940 and 1960 were still produced in over the ankle design since past. Cleats of this time were improved by using synthetic materials and leather.

During 1960’s to 1970’s:-

The change in design that the lower cut design instead of ankle high design was introduced for the first time in soccer history. That lower cut design allowed quick players to take full advantage of having free ankles to move faster on the field. Soccer legend Pele was one of many other players that wore PUMA soccer cleats during the 1962 FIFA World Cup. Adidas quickly emerged as the market leader with 75% of players in 1966 World Cup having Adidas soccer cleats. Mitre in 1960, Asics in 1964 and Joma in 1965 were also made during those years as competition for them.

During 1970’s to 1980’s:-

Pele lifted the 1970 FIFA World Cup trophy wearing Puma King Soccer cleats. During the 1970's sponsorship, where players got money to wear only one brand when playing .They improved by producing lighter cleats made out of synthetic and leather with improved design to help with the traction on the grass. Adidas produced the world's best selling soccer cleats "Copa Mundial" in 1979. Cleats are built out of kangaroo leather for speed and versatility and they are still used today. Italian famous soccer boot maker "Diadora" in 1977 popped up.

During 1980’s to 1990’s:-

All manufacturing companies produced lighter, new design soccer cleats during this time improving on stud placement and the overall performance of the boot. Craig Johnston got a change to the soccer boots during the 1980's as he created the Predator soccer cleats during the 1990's, those Predator's were released by Adidas in the early 1990's.They had much improved traction between the ball and soccer boot and soccer boot and the ground. LOTTO started making soccer cleats in 1982. KELME started making soccer cleats in 1982. UMBRO started making soccer cleats in 1985.

During 1990’s to 2000’s:-

After designing his new model for many years Johnston finally kept his new model out on 1994. Styling and technology made it an instant and lasting success. Adidas started introducing new polymer extrusion technologies and materials allowing for a more flexible sole as well as the normal round studs being replaced by a bladed design giving players a more stable base. Puma competed with a foam free mid-sole soccer cleats released in 1996 known as Puma Cell Technology. The entry of NIKE into the soccer cleats market immediately making an impact with its Nike Mercurial design in 1998, weighing at 200g.

During 2000’s to until now:-

The application of new research is applied in creating new and improved soccer cleats. Top three soccer cleat makers and sellers: Puma, Adidas and Nike reinforced their position as the top soccer cleat makers and sellers. There are still other smaller soccer boot producers such are Mizuno, Diadora, Lotto, Hummel and Nomis. As the time passes many new soccer cleats are made with improvement constantly being added.