Retrospect | adidas F50 Messi Collection : Football Boots : Soccer Bible

As Leo Messi prepares to lace up in his latest (and possibly his last) signature adidas F50 boot at the Nou Camp in the Champions League tonight we've taken a look back at his entire exclusive line to see how previous editions stack up to the new Pibbe de Barr10 adizero.

Inspired by Ballon d'Ors, trophies and just generally smashing the life out of every single goalscoring record ever made the Messi signature line is one of the longest in the industry. When Barcelona host Manchester City tonight in the second leg of the last 16 Messi will slip into his 17th exclusive F50 from a collection that kicked off in 2008 and has been as busy as the man who wears them ever since.



F50.9 TUNIT Messi "Silver/Blue" 2008/09 - Messi’s first signature adidas F50 arrived in the 2008/09 season; his first wearing the Barcelona no.10. Messi wore his debut signature shoe to make one of his earliest marks in the history of FC Barcelona, scoring the club's 5000th La Liga goal against Racing Santander. Most notably though, the boots were worn in Barcelona’s 2-6 demolition of Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu. Oh, and a Copa del Rey, La Liga and Champions League treble.

F50i TUNIT Messi "Navy/Gold/Argentina Blue" 2009/10 - After guaranteeing that his Champions League winning F50i boots made the back pages of every national newspaper, adidas wasted little time before extending Messi's signature line, this time with the limited edition “Navy/Gold/Argentina Blue”adidas F50i. His second signature boot felt more ‘Messi’ than the first, with a K-Leather upper and clean design bespoke with lace-cover graphic inspired by the flags of Argentina and Messi’s home town of Rosario.

F50i TUNIT Messi "White/Navy/Gold" 2009/10 - Ahead of Barca’s opening clasico of the season, adidas handed Messi another signature F50i design. The “White/Navy/Gold” boots - an update on the previous colourway - would go on to be on of Messi’s most memorable boots, breaking many records and winning even more titles. In a season where he scored 4 goals against Arsenal Messi was awarded with his first FIFA World Player of the Year, becoming the first Argentine to win the accolade.

F50 adizero Messi Ballon d'Or "Gold/Black" 2010/11 - The start of the 2010/11 season brought the first Leo Messi signature of the newly introduced adidas F50 adizero. The boots were designed in a simple gold and black outfit in celebration of his ‘World Player of the Year’ status and were first worn by Messi in Argentina's international friendly match against Spain - a match which took Messi just 10 minutes to get on the score-sheet. Slick.

F50 adizero Messi Ballon d'Or "Gold/White" 2011/12 - After becoming only the second player to win three consecutive Ballon d’Ors, adidas celebrated the achievement by releasing another special edition signature colourway. Sticking with the same gold theme, adidas added touches of white with black stripes to deliver another simple, but beautifully effective design. Messi only wore these boots on one occasion, in Barcelona’s 4-2 victory of Real Betis. Did he score? Of course he scored.

miadidas F50 adizero Messi "White/Black/Vivid Red" 2012/13 - In 2012 adidas invited fans to submit their own designs using miadidas, with Leo picking his favourite to wear for a one-off match against Atletico Madrid. After 14,200 entries, the winning design came from Javier Pascual Mullor, whose creation comprised of a white upper with vivid red heel and three stripes. Boom, two more goals in a 4-1 win. Job done.

F50 adizero Messi Ballon d'Or "Black/Gold" 2012/13 - The new year brought a fourth consecutive Ballon d’Or title for Messi which meant one thing; another signature, celebratory design. The unique boots brought a different twist to adidas’ previous designs, featuring four gold suns in reference to each of Messi’s Ballon d’Or winning years. Once again, the boots were worn for just one game in the Copa del Rey. Barcelona’s opponents that day: Malaga. Did he score? What do you think...

F50 adizero Messi "Running White/Red" 2013/14 - By 2013 Messi had some serious achievements on his CV, including five league titles, two Spanish Cups, five Spanish Super Cups, three Champions League titles, one Olympic gold medal and four consecutive FIFA Ballon d’Or trophies - not to mention 91 goals in a single calendar year. Finally this was the trigger for adidas to up their Messi signature game and introduce a new series of exclusive designs bespoke with Messi’s new “M” logo.

F50 adizero Messi "Turbo Blast/Purple/White" 2013/14 - The colours and graphics used took their inspiration from strokes of light representing Leo’s movement on the pitch. To launch the boot, adidas fitted Messi in an LED suit, capturing his movement, speed and touch in a completely different light. Messi went on to wear these in Barcelona’s group stage Champions League tie against AC Milan. The match ended 1-1, with Barcelona grabbing a late equaliser. No prizes for naming the goalscorer.

F50 adizero Messi "White/Black/Slime" 2013/14 - Gearing towards Brazil 2014 and adidas were getting into the Samba spirit releasing Messi’s third signature boot in the new series. The design, based on a white upper, featured strips of colour rising from the base of the boot. They were released in time for Messi and Barcelona to take on Manchester City in the Champions League and score his first goal on English soil. Messi also laced up in the boots for Barcelona’s 4-3 Clasico victory against Real Madrid, scoring a hat-trick to make him the top goal scorer in El Clasico fixtures.

F50 adizero Messi "370" 2013/14 - When Messi scored a hat-trick against Osasuna in Barcelona’s 7-0 victory he surpassed Paulino Alcantara’s club record of 369 goals to become Barcelona’s all-time top goalscorer in all competitions. To celebrate, adidas launched a limited edition, celebratory boot which took inspiration from Barcelona’s club colours. Each of the 370 boots were individually numbered, representing each of Messi’s 370 club goals for Barcelona. They were worn by Messi for a single fixture against Celta Vigo on March 26th; a match which ended 3-0. Did he score? You're not getting this are you? 

F50 adizero Messi "Battle Pack" 2014 - The "Battle Pack” would be the lead on-pitch story from adidas at the World Cup, who unified each of their boots with a patterned, mono-chrome effect. For Messi though, things would be a little different with adidas adding a pure blue theme running down the middle. Messi gave the boots their first run-out in Argentina’s opening World Cup group game against Bosnia and Herzegovina. First game, first goal for Messi who scored Argentina’s winning goal in a 2-1 victory over Serbia.

F50 adizero Messi "Birthday Boots" 2014 - To celebrate Messi’s 27th birthday which coincided with the World Cup, adidas produced a special, multi-coloured boot that was worn no more than a single time in an Argentina training session. The limited edition ‘Birthday Boots’ featured an all-over, multi-coloured effect, drawing on the same “Battle Pack” theme used throughout the World Cup range. The boots were limited to just 27 pairs worldwide; each representing a year of Messi’s life.

F50 adizero Messi "Neon Orange" 2014/15 - After picking up the Golden Ball at the World Cup - albeit rather controversially - Messi’s arrival back to Barca was welcomed with another signature boot. Designed with a “Neon Orange”  upper, the boots were the canvas for quotes that reflected his playing style, while the insole read “Mes Que Un Botin” - meaning “More than a Boot”. The boots would be worn by Messi for another number of records, including the record for goals scored in La Liga, previously held by Telmo Zarra with 251 goals.

F50 adizero Messi Blaugrana "Neon Orange/Earth Green 2014/15 - The “Blaugrana” F50 editions were the second instalment in a series which also included Messi’s “Neon Orange” La Liga boots, and were worn solely in Barca’s Champions League campaign. The boots supported four varieties of colour, each inspired by the architecture of Barcelona and representing the four times he has claimed the Golden Boot. More records fell in these boots, as Messi went on to become the all-time top goalscorer in the Champions League, overtaking Real Madrid legend Raul.

F50 adizero Messi Mirosar10 "Power Teal/Solar Orange" 2014/15 - The final signature Messi F50 of 2014 arrived in the shape of the Mirosar10 and was designed in special recognition of Messi’s hometown of Rosario. The unique design paid close attention to Messi’s early days of playing football. The “Solar Orange” colour was taken from Leo’s first club while the insoles revealed a map of Rosario’s Batallón pitch - an abandoned military base field that Leo and his friends used to play football on.



F50 adizero Messi "Pibbe de Barr10" 2014/15 - Leo's new wheels were released this week after becoming the all-time leader in La Liga hat-tricks. Designed in tirbute to his hometown, the Pibe de Barr10 is inspired by the Barrio of Las Heras, Rosario, where Messi learned to play the game. The streets and pitches of Las Heras was where Messi first began skinning the living bejesus out of dazzled Argentinean kids trying to kick lumps out of him on his journey to becoming one of the game's greats. The story goes on...