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Messi bypasses World Cup's pink boot trend: why legends choose to tell their own story
🇦🇷 Argentina /Sports

Messi bypasses World Cup's pink boot trend: why legends choose to tell their own story

From La Nación · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

In-depth Named sources Context piece
  • Lionel Messi is one of the few Argentine players not wearing pink soccer cleats at the World Cup, prompting an examination of the trend.
  • Brands like Nike, Adidas, and Puma are outfitting players in bright pink cleats, citing increased confidence, energy, and visibility on the field and for digital consumption.
  • Experts suggest the widespread adoption of pink cleats by major brands may stem from a shared reliance on trend forecasting agencies, potentially leading to a lack of differentiation.

Lionel Messi stands out among his Argentine teammates at the World Cup, not for his on-field prowess, but for his choice of footwear. While many players are sporting electric pink cleats, Messi is among the few opting for different colors, sparking curiosity about the trend.

Pink is the new black.

— The AthleticQuoted in the article to introduce the trend of pink cleats.

The vibrant pink is a dominant theme for this World Cup, with brands like Nike, Adidas, Puma, New Balance, and Skechers all equipping their sponsored players with the eye-catching hue. "Forget Barbie pink: welcome to the fuchsia pink summer of the World Cup," noted The Guardian.

Brands justify the color choice with two main arguments: psychological impact and visibility. They claim bright colors boost player confidence and energy, while the pink hue offers superior contrast against the green pitch and is highly visible on mobile screens, the primary platform for World Cup consumption. This strategy aligns with trend forecasting agency WGSN's prediction that electric fuchsia would be a dominant color for Spring-Summer 2026. The cleats were developed over two years, anticipating the sport's biggest stage.

Forget Barbie pink: welcome to the fuchsia pink summer of the World Cup.

— The GuardianUsed to describe the prevalence of pink cleats during the tournament.

However, some experts see a potential pitfall in this trend. Hernán Braberman, co-founder of packaging agency Tridimage, suggests that major brands consulting the same trend agencies might be converging on similar color palettes. "All these huge brands asked the same two or three trend consultancies, received this electric pink color for the season, and applied it just like that," he observed. "Sure, there was no agreement between them, but they were all drinking from the same well. And that's what happens with trends: when they stay superficial, they are a danger, because you become one of many instead of one of a kind."

the colors bright give them confidence, energy and visibility to the players.

— Nike and New Balance spokespeopleExplaining the brands' rationale for using bright colors on cleats.

This sentiment is echoed in viral social media content, where creators humorously highlight the lack of distinction among the various pink cleats, despite being from different brands.

all these huge brands asked the same two or three trend consultancies, received this electric pink color for the season, and applied it just like that. Sure, there was no agreement between them, but they were all drinking from the same well. And that's what happens with trends: when they stay superficial, they are a danger, because you become one of many instead of one of a kind.

— Hernán BrabermanCo-founder of Tridimage, commenting on the potential lack of differentiation among brands adopting the same trend.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by La Nación in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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