Football Infiltrates Streetwear: NikeLab’s Air Footscape Magista | 032c Magazine

Even though many people might align the digital era with the death of printed publications, 032c magazine remains at the top of our magazine stacks. In every issue there’s a strong selection of well-written and researched articles, some excellent photography and expertly-designed page layouts. Such excellence attracts a top tier of journalism, and seeing Gary Warnett (AKA Gwarizm) on the credits is a reassuring mark of quality. In the new issue, Gary explores the connections between Nike’s Footscape tooling, football and contemporary street trends in an interesting article:

“As fashion staples, basketball and running shoes are not confined to the games they are built for. Translating football is a little tougher. The athletic shoe penetrated other markets through a consumer decision to take footwear beyond its intended place, assisted by some smart marketing. For many, it was a new use for designs aimed at the track, the road, and the court. The football pitch has always been a more difficult translation. After all a football boot is not necessarily ready for pavement wear unless you really want to make a bizarre first impression.

Over the last year, Nike has made significant shifts to bring football to lifestyle footwear without the contrivances of the past. Hybrid thinking has been man of the match, resulting in fan favorites like the Air Footscape Magista. Hyper-literal naming unites the title of the two design concepts spliced here — the Air Footscape and the Magista Obra.

Flyknit and a sock-like fit, plus a spirit of the times that welcomes stealthy ninja-like looks, made room for the Air Footscape Magista for its January debut. Freed from the weight restrictions and the protection necessary for sports performance, an addition of Vachetta leather as a heel support and removal of the original Magista’s overlay for better ventilation adds to the heightened experience.

This zeitgeist channeling, ankle caressing union of sport and style gets celebratory to coincide with the UEFA Champions League final in Berlin, plus the start of the FIFA Women’s World Cup, this weekend. The Nikelab Air Footscape Magista Tournament Pack utilises familiar colours on that textured upper, with these special editions available exclusively at NikeLab locations and Nike.com/nikelab. After plenty of practise, this is a perfect cross.”

Read the full article here on the 032c website and watch out for the forthcoming NIKELAB AIR FOOTSCAPE MAGISTA TOURNAMENT PACK which is set to drop on THURSDAY 4 JUNE and will be available via the banner below.

Image and text source: 032c.