What are the most popular goalkeeper gloves? What makes these gloves popular in the first place? I’ve looked through the options that are featured in most sites and stores and there are a couple of things in my opinion that make certain products more popular. One of those things is availability and marketing. When it comes to the most popular goalkeeper gloves, at least in the United States, what’s popular is what’s going to be seen and available. Adidas, and Nike are the two most available and advertised brands that happen to sell goalkeeper gloves in the country. From there brands like Puma or New Balance are known commodities in the country, but kind came into the market a bit late. They’ve more or less struggled to cover up that ground.
When it comes to the most popular goalkeeper gloves amongst the goalkeeping community world wide I would say that Reusch, and Uhlsport certainly have an edge on some of the other primarily goalkeeper equipment brands. They have a global reach that more local brands like Rinat don’t have. Elite goalkeeper gloves have certainly made strides in the market, but they don’t have the years in the industry that Reusch, and Uhlsport have. What I want to do for this article is cover the options that are offered by these 4 brands, Nike, Adidas, Reusch, and Uhlsport. Talk about what makes their gloves some of the most popular goalkeeper gloves on the planet. Then finally figure out if it actually makes sense to go out and buy the popular gloves on the market!
Most Popular Goalkeeper Gloves – Is Nike Just Marketing or Are They Doing Something Right?
Nike went big on their Nike Mercurial Touch Elite model. These gloves are the ones that literally fit like a sock, and are supposed to give you a ton of movement within your fingers. The current model actually features a bit of a wider cut. So what happens is that the fingers get a wider impact area. I do think that’s something that can help mitigate the true issue with these gloves which is that they lack wrist support. I don’t how it’s safe to wear these gloves without taping your wrists. Especially after you use them a couple of times and they begin to naturally loosen up. I’ve said before on the site that I do think this model is more of a marketing gimmick than an actual glove that benefits goalkeepers.
When you look into some of the other options that Nike brings to the table, particularly in lower price ranges they feature design and colors which are always attractive. It can be argued that that’s exactly part of what makes them some of the most popular goalkeeper gloves. Yet, they are totally impractical for me. They don’t help you mitigate the blow that you’ll feel on your hand after a hard shot. Even if they give you more movement in your hands, that’s not necessarily what you’re looking for as a goalkeeper at times. Even when they sometimes make decent gloves Nike is more popular for being Nike, and having a broad distribution of its products than it is for producing good gloves.
Adidas Is All In On Technology
Adidas was always known for keeping things clean and traditional. Most of the boots for example that they sold didn’t change much from year to year. Yet, the people who liked the brand kept buying the product because of the comfort and quality that they provided. When they launched their fingersave model they took the goalkeeping world by storm, and from there the designs didn’t change much for years. Over the last year and change though they’ve decided to go all in on technology and mainly promote modern cut gloves as their options. In general I like the latex palms that Adidas has better than what Nike brings to the table. They’ve been able to provide a glove that is just thick enough to soften that blow, but still favor hand movement.
I’m really on board with what they’ve done with their Adidas Predator Pro Ultimate Goalkeeping Gloves. What you have is a bit of a thicker glove as I mentioned with the technology of modern gloves, but with a more traditional strap in the wrist area. My big knock on modern cut gloves is that they force you to tape your wrists because of the loose wrist area. This is a real issue because hard impacts on your hands can easily cause injuries. The fact that they’ve taken steps to rectify this means they are listening to goalkeepers, and that’s always appreciated. However, their traditional cut glove options are now pretty cheaply made and that is a problem for people who are looking for better deals on goalkeeper gloves.
Most Popular Goalkeeper Gloves – Reusch Something For Everyone
Those Reusch Legacy goalkeeper gloves are sure to put a smile on the face of plenty of old timers. I don’t mean to be rude, but I don’t know how many people who played during the time that this model was popular are still getting between the sticks. I’m getting up in my 30s, and it’s getting harder for me to stay motivated to dive to the ground, and the original model was super old when I started! In any case, it has to be said that if you’re looking for different types of goalkeeper gloves that truly mix tradition with new technology, Reusch is right up there as potentially your main option. This is coming from someone that has criticized their speed bump gloves quite a bit on the site.
What I like is that they’ve kept straps even on their modern cut gloves because they recognize the importance of that support. Which is something that Nike and Adidas completely forgot about. That’s what kind of makes some of us wonder who is actually behind the making of these gloves. You still have options like the reusch Attrakt Pro AX2 Evolution Negative Cut Ortho-Tec Goalkeeper Gloves that give you a very traditional, and very safe feel. In fact, even the cheaper options on the attrakt line are certainly capable gloves that you could be wearing and wouldn’t hurt your game in any way. They are still popular because they know how to make gloves. It’s really as simple as that.
Uhlsport Still Looking To Stick To Tradition
Uhlsport may not be as popular in the americas, but it still carries a ton of weight in Europe. Really what you’re getting with these gloves is a true mixture of technology and tradition. If I had to say which brand is a bit reluctant to embrace new trends it may have to be them. Even from the color schemes they tend to want to stick to their red and white options that they’ve always had. What I feel though is that the grip level on their gloves is superior to what most other options out there are going to offer. Their newer models, the Hyperflex HN for example, is at heart a very traditional glove.
You can tell that they made the glove leaner, they want to hide the wrist strap, but it’s still there. For me these remain some of the most popular goalkeeper gloves, at least in Europe because you know you’re getting a quality glove. It’s like I talked about with Reusch you can sense from the type of designs that they are putting out there that they know goalkeepers. Nike and Adidas are going to be more willing to take some risks to put out the novelty product. Honestly that may not be a trend that you want to jump into.
Most Popular Goalkeeper Gloves – Could Other Brands Overtake These 4?
As I mentioned before I do think that there are brands that are eating up some of the market. Elite, Storelli, and other up and comers are putting out very strong options. I would make the argument that on a personal level I like the Elite Sports glove lineup more than I do any of the lineups from the brands that we’ve talked about. Even if one of the top 4 brands has the best glove if you will, when it comes to their entire line of products or goalkeeper gloves in particular most of the Elite options are at the very least decent. That’s certainly not something that I would say particularly for Nike and Adidas. Their cheap glove options, which consistently they sell a ton of to people who don’t know the market are very cheaply made!
This is where the dilemma of most popular goalkeeper gloves, what makes them popular kicks in! What makes a lot of these gloves popular is just the fact that people who maybe aren’t even into football know the brand from other walks of life. So when their kid or even themselves want to get into goalkeeping they’re going to gravitate towards the brands that they know. Also, it comes down to what is available to them within their lifestyle and reach if you will. Having said that, I do feel Uhlsport has become incredibly regional. They are expensive and hard to find in the Americas, and that can really hurt what is otherwise the traditional goalkeeper glove brand for many people.
Does It Matter What Brand The Pros Wear?
I did an article a while back on if pro goalkeepers wear Fingersave gloves. I don’t want to spoil the article for you, but after some very careful research analyzing pictures I came to the conclusion that they don’t. Yet, most goalkeepers don’t really have too much of an issue switching brands if another brand is going to give them a better contract. The fact is you have to trust your skills, and not the gloves. When you’re wearing the premium line gloves from any brand the difference is like splitting hairs. Also when a big name keeper goes with an upcoming brand they are given liberty to design the glove that they are going to wear so a lot of them end up getting just what they want.
Saying this, I think there’s actually a danger in saying I want these gloves because I saw so and so wear them. I understand that in some age groups that’s something that can carry a lot of weight. However, it could end up being a decision that is to your detriment. The way I see it, each goalkeeper should be looking for a pair of gloves that fits their specific needs best. Some people like thicker bulky gloves because they need help dealing with the hard shots. There’s no shame in that, if that’s you stay away from the skinny modern gloves! You’re going to get hurt if you don’t. It’s not necessarily good to want to get the gloves that any keeper has if they don’t fit your needs.
Most Popular Goalkeeper Gloves – Conclusion
In a sense , the last topic I covered kind of summarizes the article already. In any case, part of the intention behind the article is to highlight the importance of buying gloves that actually fit your needs. Goalkeeper gloves don’t only serve the purpose of helping you make more saves. At the same time they should be an ally to help you avoid injuries. Not all of the models out there from the popular brands really offer a solution in that department. I’m truly worried that some brands just want to put more eye-catching products out there without really taking into account the needs of those of us who stand between the sticks.
There’s an argument to be made that goalkeeper glove makers have more of a responsibility to the common player than they do to the professionals. For one, the money from sales is going to come mostly from Sunday league players, and not professionals. Also, if you’re just playing kick abouts you can’t expect to be as prepared as a professional, particularly when it comes to the physical tools to avoid injuries. Injuries in my point of view are the main concern in this whole ordeal. Hence the importance of finding gloves that truly allow you to cover your needs.
