Nikefootball New Zealand

Ronaldo rewrites history

BLOG_AU — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 05:59:45 GMT

Didn’t take him long.

After just four games in the white of Madrid, Cristiano has stamped his name in the club’s record books. Last night he became the first player ever to score in all of his first four games for the club.

Who knows what he’ll do in the next 34.

Business as usual

BLOG_AU — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 22:08:44 GMT

When all eyes are on you, what do you do?

If you’re Cristiano Ronaldo, you do what you’ve always done.

Just 27 minutes into his European debut, he fired in a trademark free kick. Then added another in the second half.

Same again next time?

Sometimes it’s what you can’t see that makes him faster

BLOG_AU — Fri, 15 May 2009 02:15:46 GMT

Speed scores goals. Two steps ahead of your opponent can mean the difference between scoring a goal and losing the ball. The Mercurial Vapor has been delivering on that promise for years. That's why the Vapor is the boot of choice for CR7.

And now Ronaldo has a new secret weapon, the Mercurial Blade. The new pinnacle in shin guard technology, the Blade features an ultra-thin carbon fibre composite shell designed to withstand the demands of the game at an elite level. Nike's lightest ever elite guard. Two steps ahead will now be four steps ahead. Defenders beware.

The History of Speed – Mercurial Vapor I

BLOG_AU — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 02:20:41 GMT

The original Mercurial caused the kind of stir a shark makes in a fish pond. And with its standard-bearer R9 still ruling the world four years later, the new Mercurial Vapor was the most highly anticipated boot ever to emerge from the Nike Lab – in time for the showpiece event of 2002.

With the world’s attention turned towards Korea and Japan, Terry Gilliam’s Cage Tournament ad offered the first glimpse of Ronaldo’s long-awaited new weapon – and sent chills down the spines of defenders who knew they were about to meet their match.

Never mind the eye-catching haircut – the gaze of the fans never shifted from R9’s feet as he laid down the tournament performance of his career. Eight goals in seven matches. A brace in the biggest final of all. And a record-breaking fifth world title brought safely back to Brazil. There was never any doubt whose name would come out of the envelope when the 2002 World Player of the Year was announced.

While the appreciation of R9’s fans was still echoing around the globe, a certain Cristiano Ronaldo was quietly building a reputation to match that of his Brazilian namesake. He pulled on his own pair of Mercurial Vapors to thump home his first ever Man Utd goal, laying down the warning that giving him a free kick on the edge of the box is like chalking up a free United goal on the scoreboard. It didn’t take long for opposition defences to sit up and take note.

The History of Speed – Mercurial Mark One

BLOG_AU — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 01:57:21 GMT

When our designers at Nike HQ first decided to pour their energy into developing the lightest boot in the world, there was only ever going to be one candidate to wear it. Brazil's Ronaldo - the original "Phenomenon." Winner of consecutive World Player of the Year awards in 1996 and 1997. Winner of the 1997 Ballon d'Or for Europe's best player. Owner of a trophy cabinet so full of the game's highest honours that it creaked under the strain of silverware. R9 was about to lend his talent, his vision and - most of all - his mind-blowing speed to developing the fastest boot of his generation.

Fast forward a few months, and the anticipation of the finished boot is too much even for the man himself. The official launch is still weeks away, but Ronaldo emerges from the lab with the very first Mercurial disguised as a Tiempo boot, wreaking havoc on Serie A defences before his opponents even know what hit them. As if that would have made a difference.

On French soil just a few weeks later, R9 uses the biggest stage in the world to announce the Mercurial’s official arrival. A ball drops 20 yards out. A foot flashes. The net bulges. And the marriage of the world's greatest players and the world's fastest boots has begun.

Ronaldo wins 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year

BLOG_AU — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 03:11:01 GMT

He's adored by his fans and loathed by his adversaries. He's even silently worshipped by the haters who wish they could have him on their team. Love him or hate him, Cristiano Ronaldo has been voted 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year.

The love makes him strong. The hate makes him unstoppable.

Cristiano Ronaldo Wins 2008 Ballon d'Or

BLOG_AU — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 00:54:07 GMT

96 Journalists from around the world voted and, love him or hate him,

CR7 is the man to beat.