Before the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina kicked off on Sunday, Timothée Chalamet was handed one of the biggest jobs in football. with him mini mullet Flowing in the New Jersey breeze, the actor carried the official Adidas Trionada Final Match ball onto the pitch before La Roja beat Argentina 1-0 in extra time. And, naturally, he did it in a pair of Adidas Sambas.
However, not the regular ones. Chalamet wore the Clot x Adidas Samba Espadrille, a very summery remix by Edison Chen’s Hong Kong streetwear label. A sequel to last year’s Stan Smith espadrille, the collab takes the upper from the Samba Millennium, adds a suede toebox, swaps out the usual gum sole for woven raffia, and affixes the Clot’s logo to the heel in shiny gold foil. And the timing really couldn’t be better.
Maja Hitij – FIFA/Getty Images
Cast your mind back three years. It’s 2023 and the Samba is one of the most popular sneakers in the universe. whether you were ronnie fieg Or grace wales bonnerEvery designer out there had a collab pair on the shelves. For a while, it seemed like it was the only shoe anyone wanted. Then came the inevitable reaction – people got bored, trends moved on. Former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak did a duet and TikTok has more or less decided that samba’s time is over.
But it appears Chalamet is on a mission to bring it back, and he’s not the only famous guy wearing it. finn wolfhard While, wore the classic white colorway in NYC in January Harry Styles Went out in a pair during snl Monologue March Slowly but surely, the Three Stripes icon is back in the rotation.
And if there was ever a place ripe for a comeback, it was the World Cup. While the Samba is now more known as a lifestyle trainer, it actually started life as a football boot. Originally released in 1949 to help players train on frozen pitches, the version we know today arrived in 1972 with a redesigned outsole for grip and quick changes of direction.
So, is the so-called “Samba concern” era finally over? Timothée Chalamet picked up the ball, Spain won the trophy, and Adidas’ OG soccer shoe suddenly looked fresh again. Not a bad result by all means.
This story was originally published on British GQ.
