The Upper and Cleats

The “upper” is an extremely important component of our cleats, especially if we are kicking (or getting kicked and stepped on!). The “upper” is the material that wraps around the top and over our foot.

We found a good technical definition from a Reebok Patent... "the upper is that part of the shoe which covers and protects the heel, instep, toe and side portions of the foot." The Patent goes on to describe that the upper is "secured" to the foot by shoe laces, VELCRO, etc...

Uppers are frequently made from natural leather, synthetic leather, microfiber and various types of mesh. For soccer cleats (football boots), we know that "natural" leather (normally cow or kangaroo) give the best feel for the soccer ball. Specifically soft k leather which is kangaroo leather, and ULT-K leather. Therefore, for top performance, we recommend soccer, baseball and football shoes with leather uppers, but these tend to be more expensive than synthetics.

When field conditions are wet, these "natural" leather uppers will absorb water over a short time and these shoes will become heavier. This will have a big impact especially when soccer players are often running 9 km (around 5 – 6 miles) per game. Under these conditions, it is probably better to use a soccer or football cleat with a synthetic or preferably a microfiber material upper. This material will not absorb the water and therefore the shoes will remain light throughout the match/game. Baseball is usually played under dry conditions and therefore a pair of microfiber cleats might not be necessary.

Custom Search