Foam Football Shoes

While you can technically play with any boot in any position, your movement is different depending on your position, and therefore having boots that play to your position’s needs is always a good idea.

• Goalkeeper: It needs to be comfortable, offer a great strong strike and good traction. SG (soft ground) and FG (firm ground) boots are always a safe bet.
• Central defenders: A solid, durable boot that can handle flying into tackles. It’s a tough position, so boots with a little cushioning can’t go wrong.
• Full backs & wing backs: A lightweight feel with good touch control, while still offering sufficient protection.
• Central midfield: With a lot of direction changes, you need a boot that has excellent traction, aides control but is light enough for you to sprint across the pitch.
• Wide midfield: You’ll be zooming up and down the pitch, so a lightweight shoe with a tiny bit of grip will get you past the defenders.
• Striker: It’s all about agility, speed and power. You need a boot that is light, offers control and power to take shot after shot after shot.

Getting new boots can be a hassle because it always takes a while to make them fit like a glove (in this case a boot). There are a couple of things you can do to make breaking in your new football boots a bit less painful:

• Ease your boots in. Wear them around the garden, for a walk in the park with them, or just walk around the house.
• Wear them in the bath. Yes, that’s right. This helps the boot mould after your foot. Make sure the water isn’t too hot. Fill them with newspaper and dry them naturally.
• Wear them to training before a game. Gradually introduce your new boots by wearing them to training, if you feel any pain, immediately switch to your old ones. Keep doing this and every time you’ll be able to keep them on for a little bit longer.

If you’re playing regularly, once every season is a good rule of thumb. But if your boots feel fine, don’t have any visible tears and you’re happy with how they perform, keep kicking about in them until you feel it’s time for a change. Just keep in mind that the state of your boots does play a big part in your performance and safety, so make sure they are in good enough shape to keep you playing your best.

There are endless shapes, materials, designs and features for football shoes out there. Knowing what type of pitch you’re playing on, your position and your budget will inform what type of football shoe is best for you.