10 Best Nike Soccer Cleats in 2021
When it comes to sportswear, Nike is king. With at least three major lines for soccer, there are dozens of cleats that bear The Swoosh logo out there. With their reputation on the line, Nike makes sure that each one of them are good, or at least functional.
But as they say, even among the best there’s a hierarchy. We’ve tested them--all 70+ of them–to identify those that really stand out. You can find the most notable ones here.
Overview of this guide
How we come up with the top Nike soccer cleats
Here at RunRepeat, we make sure that only the most objective reviews get to you. Hence, we buy all the soccer cleats using our own funds to get rid of sponsorship bias. We then do the following:
- Use these Nike shoes, and all other soccer cleats in our inventory, in actual games so that the review would come out realistic, complete, and practically informative.
- Make collective assessments, because mind you, we are a team of experts here. This ultimately lessens the risk of the review becoming too subjective.
- Consider the inputs of users and other experts from all over the net. So, you need not do research; just read our review and you are ready to make a well-informed buying decision.
Best Overall
5 colorways available 5 colorways available The Nike Mercurials rarely disappoint. They are well-loved by pros and hobbyists alike, and the Nike Mercurial Vapor Elite 14 is not an exemption. This soccer cleat just ticks all the right boxes. Quite frankly, it would already be abuse if we still asked for more.
You see, the traction was already very solid, and it didn’t matter whether it was sunny or raining. The spikes just dug in without creating any fuss. As a result, chasing after opponents, blocking their moves, and even making sharp turns to trick them were all just a breeze.
Aside from that, the engineered mesh upper just provided a stable one-to-one fit. It also had the right texture to ensure that all the ball maneuvers that we needed to do on the pitch were flawlessly executed. We were just in awe and blissfully satisfied with this.
The fact that it also looked very pretty on feet was a very welcome bonus. It never hurt to look good while performing so well, right?
Hence, if you are looking for a soccer cleat that just delivers all that you need and more, you need not look far and wide. Here is the Nike Mercurial Vapor Elite 14 FG, all you gotta do is check this out!
7 colorways available 7 colorways available Nike fans would never miss this, but in case you didn’t know yet; the Mercurial line is actually divided into two. There’s the Vapor, and then there’s the Superfly. The Vapor 14 and Superfly 8 are just mirror images of each other. Needless to say, the strengths of the Vapor 14 are also the strengths of the Nike Mercurial Superfly 8 Elite FG.
Why is the Superfly 8 in the “Also Great” category then? Well, it was basically just the Vapor 14 with a Flyknit collar. This add-on got mixed reactions from us here. We all loved it, don’t get us wrong. But if the Vapor 14 was already perfect without it, what additional value does it bring?
Aesthetics.
Now, there is nothing wrong with trying to make a soccer cleat look great. Who doesn’t like beautiful stuff? But if beauty comes with a significant price increase? Well. This is where our opinions diverge.
But hey, don’t get us wrong here; this cleat was not deficient in any way performance-wise. Traction was there. Ball touch was unmistakable. Support definitely was there. Of course, the looks were there. Hence, betting on this will never be a bad idea.
Best for Indoor
Do you think that Mercurial Vapors are only good outdoors? Think again. Releases from this line also have the power to dominate the indoor courts. The Nike Mercurial Vapor 13 Pro Indoor, in particular, just blew us off our seats.
This soccer cleat was just so comfortable that we didn’t have any issue wearing it the whole day, even if we played in it for hours on end. It’s an indoor cleat, and we found it stylish enough to have that lifestyle sneaker vibes. Hence, we didn’t have qualms wearing it at work or even during our gigs.
Beside comfort and style, this soccer shoe also had great traction. During training, footwork drills instantly became our favorites. Sometimes, you just gotta have a great soccer shoe to love those really exhausting exercises!
Now, talking about the price, we thought this shoe was just within a very reasonable range. In fact, given all the goodness that it delivered, Nike could actually charge just a little bit more for this shoe. We are just glad that they didn’t.
All this talk will just go to waste if you don’t try the Nike Mercurial Vapor 13 Pro Indoor for yourself. So get that credit card ready now!
2 colorways available 2 colorways available The surface on which indoor games are played may not be as rough, but this doesn’t mean that indoor shoemakers can now be complacent. Of course not. Indoor soccer or futsal is just as high-pressure as any sport, and shoes built for it should be able to keep up. The Nike Tiempo Legend 8 Academy Indoor did just that.
One of the reasons the Tiempo Legend 8 Academy Indoor is well-loved is its straight-out-of-the-box comfort. Breaking in a shoe takes time, and many of us just didn’t have time for it. So a ready-to-use option is always welcome.
With that said, the shoe was just so good in terms of comfort. The fit was quite snug, but it surely was not restrictive because of how soft the upper materials were. This shoe was not just on our feet, it was there to do some pampering to ward off fatigue and cramps.
Traction was also quite good. We didn’t have to worry about slipping even if our cuts were already too sharp and turns were all so sudden. When Nike said this shoe grips well, they surely meant it.
Given all that, it’s such a pleasant surprise that the Nike Tiempo Legend 8 Academy Indoor was still within an affordable range.
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