If you have seen any of these world cup Over the past few weeks (and if not, what’s up, friends? Everything okay?), you’ve probably noticed that everyone is wearing basically the exact same football shoes. Then there’s Michael Olise.
While most of the world’s best players are wearing only what their shoe deal requires, the London-born French winger has spent the tournament doing something incredibly rare in elite football: wearing the shoes because he really likes them. It certainly sounds basic enough, but pro sports don’t really work that way anymore.
Jasmine Walter – UEFA/Getty Images
Olise has rocked the 2015 Nike Mercurial Superfly 4, the 2024 Superfly 10 and New Balance Tekela V4+, and even the 2006 Adidas F50 Tunit, which is old enough to buy a drink at the pub. According to expert account boot cultureIn Olisse’s first season at Bayern, the 24-year-old wore 15 (!) different pairs in training. But his most favorite boot model remains, without a doubt, the Nike Hypervenom Phantom III.
Hypervenom Phantom III was first released in 2017 and has long been discontinued. Most of the players would have moved on years ago – the sponsors would have made sure of that. But Olise just keeps finding ways to get back to it, finding old pairs and bringing them back into circulation like a boy searching for a jacket on eBay that he regrets not buying in three different colors.
Alex Grim/Getty Images
