Nike Officially Announces the Soccer-Inspired Kobe 8 Mambacurial

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Complex Original

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Today we get another look at Nike's homage to The Black Mamba's second favorite sport with the Kobe 8 Mambacurial.

This hybrid version of the lengendary Nike Mercurial soccer boot mimics the sleek design of the Nike Mercurial Vapor IX cleat while maintaining all of the hardcourt features that Kobe's quick plays and aggressive style requires. The Kobe 8 Mambacurial combines fundamental design elements of both basketball and soccer, a majority of which has been taken from the latest cleat. The electric-lime Swoosh and oversized logo are reminiscent of the football boot with “Mambacurial” notated on the backside of the tongue. The most eye-gripping design element is the Fireberry colorway, now applied to the Nike engineered mesh upper.

“It’s great to see powerful design come together across sports,” Bryant says. The Kobe 8 Mambacurial is another innovative marker for Nike, and brings soccer appeal to basketball fans who now can get a taste of the Mercurial design on the court.

The shoe is now available at select retailers and Nike internationally, and will release in North America by June 7.

Does this mean Cristiano Ronaldo is getting a Kobe Bryant inspired cleat soon? We sure hope so.

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