Lionel Messi cleats are always in demand as he is arguably the greatest soccer player ever. He has garnered numerous honors and awards over his career, such as winning seven Ballon d’Or awards. Because of this, his soccer cleats have become iconic.
Here at Sportrankers.com, we are massive fans of Lionel, so far we have taken a look at the languages Messi speaks and his wife, Antonella Roccuzzo, so let’s look back at the development of his cleats over time from 2004 until today.
2004/2005 – Adidas F50 Adizero
Messi began his professional career with FC Barcelona during the 2004/2005 season and donned Adidas F50 Adizero soccer cleats designed to be lightweight and fast, ideal for his style of play. These lightweight yet speedy cleats featured synthetic uppers topped by a leather finish for optimal ball control as well as a unique stud pattern to provide maximum traction on the pitch.
As it was his rookie season, Messi made his first-team debut for Barcelona, but only played in a handful of games and did not score any goals or make any assists.
2005/2006 – Adidas F50 Tunit
Messi made his switch to Adidas F50 Tunit soccer cleats during the 2005/2006 season. These customizable cleats allowed players to personalize them to suit their playing style; Messi opted for a leather upper with a suede finish, a lightweight TPU soleplate for quick movements, and a unique stud pattern that provided excellent grip when running.
Messi scored his first goal for Barcelona in May 2006 and finished the season with 1 goal and no assists in 9 appearances.
2006/2007 – Adidas F50.7
In 2006/2007, Lionel Messi opted for the Adidas F50.7 soccer cleats. These cleats featured a synthetic upper with a leather finish for better touch on the ball, an innovative stud pattern to ensure effective pitch traction, and an external heel counter that provided added support and stability to his feet.
Messi had a breakout season, scoring 17 goals and making 14 assists in 36 appearances for Barcelona.
2007/2008 – Adidas F50.8
Messi wore Adidas F50 cleats again during the 2007/2008 season, this time opting for their F50.8 models. These shoes featured a synthetic upper with a leather finish for optimal touch on the ball, an exclusive stud pattern to provide exceptional traction on the pitch, and an eyelet cover that offered more striking surfaces on which to strike the ball.
Messi continued to improve, scoring 16 goals and making 10 assists in 40 appearances for Barcelona.
2008/2009 – Adidas F50.9
Messi opted for Adidas F50.9 soccer cleats during the 2008/2009 season. These shoes featured a synthetic upper with a leather finish for improved ball handling; light soleplate material (TPU), ideal for quick movements; and a unique stud pattern ensuring ample traction on the pitch surface.
Messi had his best season yet, scoring 38 goals and making 18 assists in 51 appearances for Barcelona, winning his first Ballon d’Or.
2009/2010 – Adidas F50.9 Tunit
Messi wore Adidas cleats again during the 2009/2010 season, this time opting for the Adidas F50.9 Tunit. These customizable cleats allowed players to personalize the upper, soleplate, and studs as needed based on playing style – Messi chose a synthetic upper with a leather finish for optimal ball control; the TPU soleplate provided quick movement without hindering control, while its unique stud pattern provided extra traction on the pitch.
Messi scored 47 goals and made 11 assists in 53 appearances for Barcelona, winning his second Ballon d’Or.
2010/2011 – Adidas F50 AdiZero Prime
Messi made his return to the Adidas F50 line during the 2010/2011 season by donning Adidas F50 adiZero Prime soccer cleats, designed for optimal lightness at just 5.1 ounces. These lightweight soccer cleats featured synthetic upper with a leather finish for good ball touch while lightweight SprintFrame soleplate material allowed quick movements; finally, they boasted a unique stud pattern that provided superior traction on the pitch.
Messi scored 53 goals and made 24 assists in 55 appearances for Barcelona, winning his third Ballon d’Or.
2011/2012 – Adidas F50 AdiZero Prime
Messi remained faithful to his signature Adidas F50 adiZero Prime cleats during the 2011/2012 season, keeping their lightweight design, synthetic upper, SprintFrame soleplate, and SprintFrame soleplate features while having their stud pattern altered slightly to provide even greater traction on the pitch.
Messi broke Gerd Muller’s record for most goals in a calendar year, scoring 91 goals and making 22 assists in 69 appearances for Barcelona, winning his fourth Ballon d’Or.
2012/2013 – Adidas F50 AdiZero
Messi wore Adidas F50 adiZero soccer cleats in the 2012/2013 season, designed to be even lighter than previous models at only 4.7 ounces. They featured a synthetic upper with a leather finish for excellent touch on the ball; a soleplate made of lightweight SprintFrame material designed to allow quick movements; as well as a unique stud pattern that provided maximum traction on the pitch.
Messi scored 60 goals and made 16 assists in 50 appearances for Barcelona, winning his fifth Ballon d’Or.
2013/2014 – Adidas F50 Messi
Adidas introduced their inaugural signature Messi soccer cleats, known as Adidas F50 Messi, during the 2013/2014 season. These cleats featured a synthetic upper with a leather finish for good touch when handling the ball and lightweight SprintFrame soleplate material for quick movements and agility. Furthermore, these Adidas F50 Messis had unique stud patterns providing excellent traction on the pitch while featuring Messi’s iconic “M” logo on the heel and tongue for easy identification on game days.
Messi scored 41 goals and made 16 assists in 46 appearances for Barcelona.
2014/2015 – Adidas F50 Messi
Messi continued wearing his Adidas F50 Messi soccer cleats during the 2014/2015 season. These cleats featured similar characteristics as previous season models: synthetic upper, SprintFrame soleplate, and Messi’s signature “M” logo; however, their stud pattern was changed slightly for even greater traction on the pitch.
Messi scored 58 goals and made 27 assists in 57 appearances for Barcelona, winning his sixth Ballon d’Or.
2015/2016 – Adidas Messi15
Adidas released their Messi15 soccer cleats during the 2015/2016 season, and they proved extremely popular with Messi. Boasting synthetic uppers with leather finishes for better ball control and SprintFrame material soleplates that allowed quick movements, these lightweight SprintFrame soleplate cleats also featured a unique stud pattern to provide greater gripping power on the pitch and featured his iconic “M” logo prominently displayed both on its heel and tongue.
Messi scored 41 goals and made 23 assists in 49 appearances for Barcelona, winning his seventh Ballon d’Or.
2016/2017 – Adidas Messi16
Adidas continued their Messi line during the 2016/2017 season with Adidas Messi16 soccer cleats. Designed to deliver optimal touch on the ball, these lightweight SprintFrame soleplate cleats featured an innovative stud pattern to provide optimal traction on the pitch as well as Messi’s signature “M” logo on both the heel and tongue of each cleat.
Messi scored 54 goals and made 16 assists in 52 appearances for Barcelona, winning his eighth Ballon d’Or.
2017/2018 – Adidas Nemeziz Messi 17
Messi transitioned to Adidas Nemeziz during the 2017/2018 season and donned their Adidas Nemeziz Messi 17 soccer cleats for optimal play. These were designed for maximum comfort and featured an innovative “360 Agility Bandage” system to offer additional support, while their “Dual Lock Collar” upper was snug around the ankle. Finally, the lightweight Torsion Frame material soleplate made these ideal for quick movements, while their unique stud pattern ensured excellent grip on the pitch.
Messi scored 45 goals and made 18 assists in 54 appearances for Barcelona.
2018/2019 – Adidas Nemeziz Messi 18
Messi returned to his Adidas Nemeziz line during the 2018/2019 season, wearing Adidas Nemeziz Messi 18 soccer cleats. These featured an improved version of their previous models, including a 360 Agility Bandage System, Dual Lock Collar system, Torsion Frame soleplate design, and unique stud pattern; however, their colorway had changed with new colorway options and Messi’s iconic “M” logo prominently featured on its heel.
Messi scored 51 goals and made 19 assists in 50 appearances for Barcelona, winning his sixth Ballon d’Or.
2019/2020 – Adidas Nemeziz Messi 19
Messi remained faithful to the Adidas Nemeziz line during the 2019/2020 season and wore Adidas Nemeziz Messi 19 soccer cleats. These featured the same features found in previous models: 360 Agility Bandage System, Dual Lock Collar system, Torsion Frame soleplate design, and unique stud pattern; however, the design was altered by adding new colorways as well as Messi’s iconic “M” logo on heel and tongue.
Messi scored 31 goals and made 26 assists in 44 appearances for Barcelona, winning his seventh European Golden Shoe.
2020/2021 – Adidas Nemeziz Messi 20
Messi wore Adidas Nemeziz Messi 20 soccer cleats during the 2020/2021 season. These cleats featured similar features to previous season models, such as a “360 Agility Bandage” system, Dual Lock Collar closure system, Torsion Frame soleplate construction, and unique stud pattern; however, their appearance had been altered with a new colorway and Messi’s trademark “M” logo adorned on both heel and tongue of each shoe.
Messi scored 38 goals and made 14 assists in 47 appearances for Barcelona, winning his eighth European Golden Shoe.
2021/2022 – Adidas Speedportal X ‘Own Your Football’
In the 2021/2022 season, Messi regularly wore the Adidas Speedportal X “Own Your Football” soccer cleats; these lightweight yet sleek design shoes feature advanced technologies like their “Speedmesh” upper for enhanced ball control and Sprintframe outsole to enable explosive acceleration. As Adidas emphasizes individuality and creativity on the pitch with this campaign, these are an appropriate match with Messi’s individual playing style; fans await what cleats Messi will don next as he continues his dominance of soccer.
Messi scored 30 goals and made 14 assists in 35 appearances for Paris Saint-Germain, winning the French league and being named Ligue 1 Player of the Year, and securing his seventh Ballon d’Or.
2022/2023 – Adidas Speedportal X Leyenda (2022 World Cup)
At the 2022 FIFA World Cup held in Qatar, Lionel Messi donned Adidas Speedportal X Leyenda cleats that will go down as part of history. Leading Argentina past France in the Final, Messi scored seven vital goals, taking him near the top of the list of FIFA World Cup goalscorers, while wearing these golden and white beauties. The cleats may have taken inspiration from Messi’s Adidas F30 boots worn at the 2006 World Cup, which marked his initial major international tournament appearance.
Summary
Messi has worn many Adidas soccer cleats throughout his career, each offering distinctive features and design elements. Ranging from the Adidas F50 AdiZero Prime to the Nemeziz Messi 20, his choice has grown with both game demands and personal preferences, each piece contributing to his success on the pitch. Messi is unquestionably one of the greatest soccer players ever, and this choice of footwear has played its own part in his success on it.
