FC Barcelona unveil new Nike home kit for 2016 / 2017 season

FC Barcelona have unveiled their home jersey for the upcoming 2016 / 2017 season on Instagram and Daily Motion with Andres Iniesta, Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Gerard Pique and Neymar.

The Catalans have been in a bit of a bubble recently with Qatar Airways pulling out as their shirt sponsor and with Nike pushing Barcelona to release the jersey in time for pre-season and global shipping, the club have decided to release the new kit without a shirt sponsor.

With a small video on Instagram, the club revealed that they've based the design on one of their retro designs that won them the European Cup. "Colors to make history. A jersey to celebrate it. Introducing the new kit inspired by the 91/92 season, when FCB Barcelona conquered their first European Cup 25 years ago," read the description on the social media portal.

Coming to the kit itself, the Catalans have reverted to stripes after experimenting with hoops last season. This time, however, much like their retro design, the stripes are thick and only five are needed to cover the front torso of a player with three blue ones and two red ones in between.

Nike – who just signed a 10-year deal with the club paying a staggering €100m-a-year – have kept things simple with no messing around with the sleeves and the collar. For the shirt sponsor, Barcelona have reportedly spoken to the likes of Pepsi and more but have repeatedly been rebuffed with their demands often exceeding the offer at Nike Air Max hommes.

The jersey is sported by Neymar in the short video which, to some degree, clarifies Barcelona's stand on the Brazilian. With reported offers from Manchester United and Paris Saint Germain on the table, the former Santos man's future has been shrouded in doubt with neither party – him and the club – throwing light on the situation.

These Raw Meat Nike Sneakers Will Horrify Vegetarians

Beware, vegetarians. A pair of new Raw Meat sneakers from Nike will turn your stomach. Nike SB Dunk High Premium skateboarding shoes in Challenge Red look like they’re made out of marbleized steak.

The bright red sneaker features a marbleized fat pattern that’s inspired sneaker freaks to compare it to Wagyu beef, a white swoosh, red or white shoelaces, a red sole, and an insole with a butcher’s stamp pronouncing the sneakers “FRESH QUALITY.”

A pair will set you back $110.

Interestingly, it appears the Nike.com website doesn’t bill the sneakers as raw meat-inspired. Instead, the reference has appeared on blogs across the sneaker-sphere. While it seems that Nike doesn’t directly bill the Raw Meat sneaker as such, if you plug “meat” into the site’s search box, it takes you directly to the seemingly meat-inspired shoe page.

Perhaps Nike didn’t want to offend its vegetarian and vegan consumers? Or maybe, as with the rest of the Dunk line, they leave the insoles to speak for the sneaker itself.

This isn’t the first time that Nike has done a Dunk-style food homage. In April, the company launched Nike SB Dunk High Premium Waffle. The Chicken and Waffles-themed shoe features a waffled exterior, a buttery swoosh dripping with maple syrup, and Chicken and Waffle insoles.


There’s also the Nike SB Dunk Low Premium Cold Pizza model. It’s silver on the outside, has a black swoosh, and the insoles make it look like you’re walking on leftover pizza. They’re $100.

Nike describes it as “a unique look inspired by the traditional cuisine of street skaters.”

Previously, Nike has found itself repeated in real meat form. There’s a raw meat swoosh, a Nike Meat Air, and a Nike pate. Several years ago, Nike commissioned a group of creatives to recreate Nikes, and designer Olle Hemmendorff built a pair of undefinedNike Air Max into a sandwich at Nike Air Max soldes.

Recently, Nike released a shoe that looked like a Starbucks drink but wasn’t and gave away pairs of a special edition version of Cleveland Cavalier point guard Kyrie Irving Kyrie 2 sneakers called Ky-rispy Kreme in Krispy Kreme boxes.

Adweek sniffs at the entire sneaker-and-food effort: “It falls in line with a recent trend of apparel brands making junk-food-themed stuff, which in and of itself is kind of embarrassing.”

If it’s all too much, one can always go watch Werner Herzog eat his shoe.

Nike Football Presents the Science Of Speed

All eyes are on Milan this weekend, as the Italian city hosts club football’s biggest match. To celebrate the occasion, members of the Nike Football App are invited to take part in the ultimate football experience — the "Science of Speed." Located in the heart of Milan, the space is dedicated to the philosophy of fast, brilliant football and showcases the very latest torso-to-toe product innovations, including the new Mercurial Superfly V.

Celebrated locally for his career at Inter Milan, where he cemented reputation as the finest striker in the world, Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima, also know as "El Fenómeno" or "R9,” was one of the first players to wear the Mercurial boots back in 1998. R9’s history in the line made him the perfect choice to open the "Science of Speed,” and he kicked off proceedings by presenting the first pair of the latest Mercurial Superfly V to its delighted new owner.

“Speed has always defined my style of play,” declares Ronaldo, whose brilliant skill and goal scoring sparked the imagination of an entire generation of players “and this enabled me to make the difference in the most decisive moments on pitch. Mercurial was designed to enhance the speed and attacking play of athletes like myself and Cristiano Ronaldo.”

“Ronaldo and Cristiano Ronaldo are the two fastest strikers of the modern era in football,” legendary Italian defender Fabio Cannavaro declares. “Speed – allied to extraordinary technique – is the quality they have most in common Nike Air Max soldes.”

The "Science of Speed" journey encapsulates a series of exclusive experiences and begins in an area dedicated to the Genealogy of Mercurial. Since 1998, the boot has been engineered to be lightweight and fast. The design evolution is expressed in all its versions.

Nike Football members who visit the space will also have opportunity to personalize their own Mercurial Superfly V’s on NIKEiD, take part in a virtual race against Cristiano Ronaldo and participate in training sessions led by FC Inter Milan coaches.

Nigeria: Cheers for Nike Okundaye At 65

On May 23, the internationally acclaimed textile artist and culture promoter, Chief Mrs. Nike Okundaye, turned 65. As part of the celebrations, her gallery, Nike Art Gallery will mark a mini-festival for art writers and artists at large. This will be followed by a one week art exhibition.


"I thank God for my life. Though, the challenge is there, which we face every day, but an opportunity like this affords one to look back and thank God for what he has done for me. That is why this kind of event is dear to my heart. Apart from that, I am using it to appreciate my maker for his mercies and kindness. I also want to use it to host my colleagues in the arts," Okundaye declared in a press release announcing the scheduled celebrations.

The Kogi State-born artist is also thankful to artists who have contributed immensely in making her life as a gallery owner successful.

"What I have achieved is also because I stayed focused to this goal and my love for the arts. I also want to advise our younger artists that things may not look good today, but they should continue at Nike Air Max hommes

Challenges are things that drive us to our ultimate destiny. What I am doing with this year's birthday is not just to celebrate but to appreciate God for my life. As a matter of fact, I started my sojourn into arts when I was just six and had nothing. Having lost my mother in life early in life that challenge did not stop me and that is why I will always celebrate what God has done for me," she added.

Born on May 23, 1951, Nike is the CEO, Nike Centre for Art and Culture, Osogbo, where she offers training free of charge to Nigerians in various forms of arts. In 1996, as a way of empowering Ogidi women, she established a textile weaving centre in her home town. More than 200 women have so far benefited from that initiative. She also brings important foreign dignitaries to her hometown annually.

Nike Puts Anchor In Revitalizing Downtown Detroit By Opening 'Community Store' on Woodward

Nike NKE -0.27% has become the latest big brand willing to put a stake in the renaissance of downtown Detroit, with the opening today of its Nike Detroit Community Store in one of the old iconic retail buildings of the Motor City.

The Oregon-based athletic and lifestyle brand means to pitch into the reinvigoration of central Detroit with the opening of a 20,000-square-foot space in the former F.W. Woolworth Co. building on Woodward WWD +0.03% Avenue, smack inside the corridor that is being redeveloped by money men such as Dan Gilbert and Michael Ilitch — and within a Ruthian home-run ball’s distance of Comerica CMA -0.38% Park, Ford Field and the new Red Wings arena.

Nike’s only owned outlet in the greater area has been a “factory store” in an outlet mall in suburban Auburn Hills, Mich., 35 miles away from downtown. It was time for the company known for a strong corporate-responsibility streak to do right by Detroit.

“As we looked at timing and availability and the economics of putting in a store, we’re looking at and anticipating future growth and traffic and what we think the demographics are going to be,” Christiana Shi, president of Nike Global Direct-to-Consumer, told me. “We’d rather come a little early or right on time than a little late. And we felt the time was right in Nike Air Max soldes.”

As a Community Store, the new Nike outlet will have a few more bottom lines than just generating sales and profits for the company. The downtown Detroit store also is intended to serve as a significant employer and as another catalyst to a regeneration of the surrounding area through involvement with local schools and the contribution of many hours of volunteer time by Nike employees. It’s also meant to spur athletic involvement of the citizenry and will explore relationships with the many professional and collegiate sports teams in the immediate vicinity and throughout Michigan.

“It serves a particular role in our [store] portfolio and in our communities,” Shi explained. “We develop sport, and provide employment opportunities, in given communities and serve consumers by giving them access to Nike products and services. So we don’t locate these stores in outlet malls, which are hard to get to with cars. Or in traditional power-retailing centers. We put them right in communities, and we’re pretty selective about where we do it. Typically we’ll be one of the earliest movers in an area where retail is accelerating; we are part of that.”

New Nike Community Store in Detroit Champions Action

Detroit’s automotive history may have earned it the nickname Motor City, but the city is also renowned for a strong sports engine, fueled by a championship legacy of professional teams and local youth clubs, that never stops running. The May 26 opening of the Nike Detroit Community Store aims to both power and accelerate this legacy.

Nestled in downtown’s historic F.W. Woolworth Co. building, at 1261 Woodward Avenue, the space was once home to the eponymous pioneer of the five-and-dime stores, which converted the complex into a significant shopping destination at the turn of the century. More than 100 years later, Detroit is focused on reinvigorating the area by reanimating vacant buildings as businesses and residences, introducing a light rail that connects the neighborhood to the bustling midtown and developing a shopping and entertainment complex across the street from the Detroit Community Store. Plus, a world-class hockey arena will soon open just a few paces away.

As with other Nike Community Stores, the new space operates with four key goals in mind. The first is the aim to hire at least 80 percent of its team from within a five-mile radius of the location. In some locations, like at the Nike East Los Community Store in Los Angeles, this number is virtually 100 percent.

The second goal is to capture the spirit of the city with the store’s curated local design and product offerings. In the Detroit store, the walls feature photography of local sport courts and landmarks, including the Decquindre Cut Greenway and "Detroit Never Stops" artwork by local typographer Neil Tasker. The store also carries Detroit-specific t-shirt's and team apparel from the Detroit Lions, Detroit Tigers and Michigan State University for men, women and kids.

Thirdly, the store distinguishes itself by ensuring that its retail associates, known as “store athletes,” have an opportunity to give back to the surrounding community. In addition to the hours dedicated to community by all stores as part of une paire de nike, Community Store athletes are allocated additional volunteer hours to support groups in their backyard.

In fact, even before the store opened, the Detroit team was focused on engaging its community by volunteering with the local Boys & Girls Club chapter: the Diehl Club. Store athletes have been supporting the organization’s sport, recreation and fitness programming, including the chapter’s flag football program, as coaches and rec leaders, with plans to expand its community involvement further following the store opening.

Finally, beyond its on-ground community activation, the Detroit Community Store is the first Nike Community Store to offer $40,000 in annual grants of $5,000 each to eight local non-profit groups via the expanded Nike Community Impact Fund, which also includes Nike Community Stores in Portland, Ore., South Chicago, New Orleans, the Ivy City neighborhood of Washington D.C., Brooklyn and the East Los Community Store in East Los Angeles. In total, Community Store teams across the U.S. will award $290,000 each year in their communities in partnership with CAF America and the Oregon Community Foundation.

Release Reminder: Nike Kobe 11 Mark Parker

Following Eric Avar and Tinker Hatfield’s iterations, the last variation of the Nike Kobe 11 from the special edition “Muse” trilogy is scheduled to arrive tomorrow.

With this particular pair designed by the Swoosh’s C.E.O, Mark Parker, the basketball sneaker’s theme essentially takes cues from Bryant’s infamous moniker — The Black Mamba.

Flaunting a mixture of black and blue lagoon across its intricately woven upper, the knitted component bears a subtle snake skin-like texture to evoke the ferocious snake. Tonal black reptilian detailing are prominent on the leather heel tab to further coordinate with the theme, while more leather accents graces the tongue.

Finished off with contrasting white Swooshes across its side panels and a full length sole unit, you can purchase this pair at une paire de nike stores, May 26 for $200.

Out of the three pairs, this is the second best colorway. I liked Tinker’s creation to the most. Overall, I’m a fan of the silhouette and this should get some attention, especially since Bryant retired this year.