Nike Total 90 - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Nike Total 90 is a brand

Brand

The American Marketing Association defines a brand as a "Name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or service as distinct from those of other sellers."...

of Nike sportswear and equipment first introduced in 2000, and specifically designed to be used for association football. The range of products consists mainly of shoes, shirts, and shorts, but also includes other items such as socks, shin guard

Shin guard

A shin guard or shin pad is a piece of equipment worn on the front of a player’s shin to protect them from injury. These are commonly used in sports including association football, baseball, ice hockey, field hockey, lacrosse, rugby, cricket, and other sports...

s, equipment bags, drink bottles, goalkeeper gloves, and balls.

The Total 90 brand name is derived from the 90 minutes traditionally played in a football match, with 'Total' implying that the athlete who represents the 'Total 90' ethos is capable if giving maximum effort at any point in the game. It is now commonly abbreviated by Nike

Nike, Inc.

Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...

themselves to 'T90'.

The majority of Total 90 apparel is designed for athletic purposes and is made up of various materials that absorb sweat

SWEAT

SWEAT is an OLN/TSN show hosted by Julie Zwillich that aired in 2003-2004.Each of the 13 half-hour episodes of SWEAT features a different outdoor sport: kayaking, mountain biking, ice hockey, beach volleyball, soccer, windsurfing, rowing, Ultimate, triathlon, wakeboarding, snowboarding, telemark...

and transfer it to the outside of the material so it can evaporate quickly. More ventilated material is usually placed in areas more prone to sweat collecting such as the underarms and neck area.

In 2007, Nike introduced a new boot, the Nike Total 90 Laser. The boot's main feature was the concentric rubber rings (shot-shield) on the top of the boot, which, it was claimed, improved accuracy, swerve and power. It also boasted a "E-Vent" membrane throughout the boot's upper, which increased breathability, while blocking absorption. The boot's marketing involved several Nike-endorsed players, including Gennaro Gattuso

Gennaro Gattuso

Gennaro Ivan Gattuso, Ufficiale OMRI is an Italian footballer, who plays for Serie A club Milan. He mainly plays as a defensive midfielder. Gattuso is an aggressive, hard tackling player and in his prime, was widely regarded as one of the best defensive midfielders in the world...

, Carles Puyol

Carles Puyol

Carles Puyol i Saforcada is a Spanish footballer who plays for FC Barcelona and the Spanish national team.Mainly a central defender, he can also play on either flank, especially as a right back...

, Gonzalo Higuaín

Gonzalo Higuaín

Gonzalo Gerardo "El Pipita" Higuaín is an Argentine professional footballer. He was born in France, attaining Argentine citizenship in 2007, and now holding dual nationality...

, Diego

Diego Ribas da Cunha

Diego Ribas da Cunha , commonly known as just Diego, is an international Brazilian footballer who plays for Atlético Madrid on loan from VfL Wolfsburg, as an attacking midfielder.-Santos:...

, Fabio Cannavaro

Fabio Cannavaro

Fabio Cannavaro, Ufficiale OMRI is a former Italian footballer considered one of the greatest defenders of all time and was given the name "Muro di Berlino" which means The Berlin wall by Italian supporters. He spent the majority of his career in Italy...

, Torsten Frings

Torsten Frings

Torsten Frings is a German football midfielder who plays for Toronto FC in Major League Soccer and is known for his vision and an explosive, powerful shot.-Early career:...

, Wesley Sneijder

Wesley Sneijder

Wesley Sneijder is a Dutch footballer playing as an attacking midfielder for Internazionale. He was named UEFA midfielder of the season as well as one of the three best midfielders in the world for 2010 by FIFA....

, Wayne Rooney

Wayne Rooney

Wayne Mark Rooney is an English footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Manchester United and the England national team...

, Michael Essien

Michael Essien

Michael Kojo Essien is a Ghanaian footballer who plays for Chelsea and the Ghanaian national team. He is a midfielder who has often been touted as a box-to-box midfielder for his ability to exert boundless energy in supporting offensive and defensive play...

, Rafael Márquez

Rafael Márquez

Rafael Márquez Álvarez is a Mexican footballer who plays for New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer and the Mexico national team. He plays as a centre back or defensive midfielder....

, Fernando Torres

Fernando Torres

Fernando José Torres Sanz , nicknamed , is a Spanish footballer who plays for Chelsea and the Spain national team as a striker....

, Rikard Stendal and Florent Malouda

Florent Malouda

Florent Johan Malouda is a French footballer who plays as a left winger for Chelsea and the French national team.-Châteauroux:A street footballer in his teen years, Malouda gradually developed into an interesting, new football talent, able to penetrate defenses with his technical skills and...

.

In April 2008, the Total 90 Laser was followed by the Total 90 Laser II. This version featured a refined "sweet spot" and reduced the area of exposed laces. The high density material of the "sweet spot" combined with the rings to help keep the ball down and add swerve to the ball.

There have been seven generations of Total 90 boots, beginning with the Air Zoom Total 90, followed by Air Zoom Total 90 II, Air Zoom Total 90 III, Total 90 Supremacy, Total 90 Laser, Total 90 Laser II and, most recently, the Total 90 Laser III.
The Total 90 Laser III version is the most complex of the line of boots. It boasts 5 red silicon

Silicon

Silicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. A tetravalent metalloid, it is less reactive than its chemical analog carbon, the nonmetal directly above it in the periodic table, but more reactive than germanium, the metalloid directly below it in the table...

pods that are designed to improve the strike zone, it also comes equipped with TPU fins that are designed to enhance touch and control..

In September 2011, Nike revealed the latest incarnation of their signature power/accuracy boots; the Nike T90 Laser IV. This latest incarnation did away with the silicon pods and TPU rubber fins of the Laser III, and introduced 'strips' of hard rubber

Rubber

Natural rubber, also called India rubber or caoutchouc, is an elastomer that was originally derived from latex, a milky colloid produced by some plants. The plants would be ‘tapped’, that is, an incision made into the bark of the tree and the sticky, milk colored latex sap collected and refined...

to the forefoot which shift and bend with the movements of the foot - with Nike coining the name 'Adaptive Shield' for this new technology. The Laser IV also features TPU swerve fins to generate friction and ball spin, and a Power Zone that improves strength and accuracy when striking the ball..

With the launch of the Nike T90 Laser IV, Nike were also keen to re-invent the silo for the modern striker

Striker

Forwards, also known as strikers, are the players on a team in association football who play nearest to the opposing team's goal, and are therefore principally responsible for scoring goals...

. As such, the boot's weight was decreased by 20% to around 270 g (9.5 oz) (in a US size 9 boot), and the Laser IV's silhouette and shape were slimmed down from the wide-fitting Laser III.

Launched in two colourways, White/Black/Total Orange and Black/Silver/Yellow, the Nike T90 Laser IV hit the pitch early when Wesley Sneijder

Wesley Sneijder

wore them in Inter Milan's clash with Palermo

Palermo

Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...

at the start of the 2011-12 Serie A season .

The boot's official on-pitch debut was on 18 September 2011, when Wayne Rooney

Wayne Rooney

Wayne Mark Rooney is an English footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Manchester United and the England national team...

wore them in Manchester United

Manchester United F.C.

Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...

's Premier League match against Chelsea

Chelsea F.C.

Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...

See also