The Effects of Soccer Cleats

If you play soccer competitively, you know that cleats are a big deal. But exactly how important are they? Will soccer cleats really improve your performance? These are questions that many soccer players ask themselves. There hasn't been any conclusive research that shows that nicer cleats give you a large upper-hand. However, most people believe that better cleats will greatly improve your performance.

Type and Brand of Cleat

Type of Cleats:

In the modern soccer cleat market boots are targeted toward different types of positions and different types of players altogether. Some cleats say they will help you control the ball more effectively, others say they will allow you to run faster. For example Adidas' F-50s and Nike's Mercurial Vapors are targeted to fast, striker/winger players because those positions speed is important.

 

Brand of Cleats:

The brand of cleats is more of a preference then anything. Many people will argue that Nike cleats are the best and others will just say Adidas or Pumas are better. In all honesty the brand you should buy from is based more on personal preference than anything else. So it is a good idea to buy different cleats from different brands and eventually you will find the brand you really like.

Conclusion
Although different types and different bfrands of soccer cleats may have a small to midsize impact.  The largest impact they have is on the mentality of the player.  Players use to expensive cleats will have a hard time adjusting to cheaper cleats because they feel like the cheaper cleats are infereor while players used to more expensive cleats will play only slightyly better when using more expesive cleats.  All in all though, if you want to play soccer at the top level every small difference matters and thats why cleats are important.