Global sports giants accused of failing women by not going far enough in designing women’s football boots
Global sports giants have been accused of failing women by not going nearly far enough in designing boots for the specific needs of female feet.
Experts have told talkSPORT that neither traditional or 'gender-neutral' boots properly cater for women’s physiology and body mechanics.
Despite big brands saying they promote the women's game and design 'inclusive' products, talkSPORT’s analysis reveals a lack of boots designed only for female feet.
The findings come with the number of women and girls playing organised football rising to 16.6 million in 2023.
talkSPORT found Nike released The Phantom Luna, their first boot designed ‘with her in mind’, last year.
But this boot is technically unisex as it is available in men’s sizes and uses an outsole seen in many male-focused boots.
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Adidas has not released a boot specifically for women since 2016 - in the same timeframe, the company has spent over 1 billion euros on general research and development.
Under Armour had not released a female-specific boot until last year.
The findings have prompted concern amongst specialists in women’s physiology, with Associate Professor in Sports Medicine at St Mary’s University, Kat Okholm Kryger saying the situation 'of course' fails women and girls.
She says female athletes generally have narrower heels, higher foot arches and wider hips, which affects the way pressure runs through their feet.
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Outsoles on most boots are targeted to men’s traction and grip, which all impacts on knees.
But because women are generally lighter and smaller, it is argued they need designs catered for their own body mechanics.
CEO of IDA Sports, a brand dedicated to women-only football boots, Laura Youngson said: “Women are not being served in the way they could be.”
Nike did not respond to a request for comment on their track record of designing women’s football boots.
Adidas told talkSPORT rather than design boots for the exclusive needs of women and girls, it designs gender-neutral boots.
A spokesperson said: “Whilst we have previously created limited edition women’s only football boots such as the Anja in 2016, our most recent products are designed for both men and women”.
In a letter to The Women and Equalities Committee in August last year, Adidas revealed it adopts ‘a more inclusive approach to the design of football boots that are not tailored to a specific gender’s foot.’
“Having one boot and one-size fits all is not the solution," Professor Okholm Kryger added. “You can call a football boot whatever you want, but the key factor is it's actually designed to fit the needs of a male and a female football player, and those two are different."
It comes as women’s football deals with an alarming number of ACL injuries.
According to a study by Yale Medicine, women are eight times more likely than men to suffer the potentially career-ending injury, and stars like Lionesses captain Leah Williamson, Arsenal’s Beth Mead and Chelsea’s Sam Kerr are among those to have fallen victim to it.
Okholm Kryger’s 2022 report found injury risk was one of the many concerns around not having female-exclusive football boots.
She says there is no proven link between female boot design and ACL injuries, but added: “We need to consider every single factor, and I believe that this is one of them.”
Brands such as IDA Sports have rejected the gender-neutral stance.
Laura Youngson told talkSPORT that IDA fights against the 'shrink it and pink it' approach, which she claims is adopted by many of the major sports brands.
“I think traditionally there was a feeling that all you needed to do for women was shrink men's products, don't put any more design on it and just stick pink on it, because all women love pink," she said.
“It just kind of embodied the fact that women are such an afterthought.”
Ex-Sheffield United striker Courtney Sweetman-Kirk told us she’s not surprised at the lack of boots available for women.
“I think a lot of the time it goes back to business decisions, so that equity and equality will only be used if it makes sense financially, and that’s the world we live in”, she said.
It is not the first time Nike has been involved in a controversy surrounding women’s football products.
Before the 2023 Women's World Cup it came under fire for not manufacturing Mary Earps’ goalkeeper shirt, a decision it made a dramatic U-turn on after public outcry.
talkSPORT investigation - the details
Nike
talkSPORT contacted Nike three times and asked about its women’s boots.
talkSPORT also requested an interview with Dr Elysia Davies, the Principal Researcher in the Nike Sports Research Lab.
Nike did not respond on any occasion.
In 1999, Nike made a boot for US Soccer star Mia Hamm, but have not responded to talkSPORT’s enquiry to establish that this was entirely and scientifically designed around women’s specific needs.
talkSPORT’s research found The Phantom Luna ‘reimagined a boot with her at the centre of the process’ – but it is not exclusively for women.
Nike acknowledges the increased risk of ACL injuries in women, and claims its Phantom Luna unisex boot helps reduce the likelihood of suffering knee injuries.
On Nike’s website at the time of publication, there were 111 women’s football boots and shoes on offer.
It appeared to be the same list as the 111 boots categorised as unisex.
Adidas
Adidas responded to talkSPORT’s inquiry.
The company told us: 'We have a long-standing legacy of designing products by, with, and for women' and that its products 'are built for women playing the game at every level'.
They added: “All Adidas boots are tested to the highest standard with parity between men and women.”
Under Armour
Under Armour did not specifically answer talkSPORT’s questions, but sent a link to its YouTube channel where it unveiled its first female specific boot, the Magnetico, before the World Cup in 2023.
Puma
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Puma has bucked the trend by creating a number of boots specifically designed for women and girls since 2021 and invested in a research study exploring ACL injuries in women.
You can tune into talkSPORT's Women's Football Show on Mondays from 7pm on talkSPORT 2.