30 YEARS OF PREDATOR – A TRIBUTE TO AN ICON

WE CLOSED OUT A DYNAMIC YEAR BY CELEBRATING THREE DECADES OF ONE OF THE MOST REVOLUTIONARY AND ICONIC FOOTBALL BOOTS OF ALL TIME – THE ADIDAS PREDATOR.

FOR THOSE WHO GREW UP PLAYING FOOTBALL IN THE ’90S AND EARLY 2000S, THE PREDATOR WAS MORE THAN JUST A BOOT – IT WAS A SYMBOL OF GAME-CHANGING MOMENTS ON THE SPORT’S BIGGEST STAGES:

  • 1996 PREMIER LEAGUE – BECKHAM’S HALFWAY-LINE STRIKE
  • 1998 WORLD CUP FINAL – ZIDANE’S LEGENDARY HEADERS
  • 2000 EURO FINAL – TREZEGUET’S GOLDEN GOAL
  • 2001 WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS – BECKHAM’S UNFORGETTABLE FREE-KICK
  • 2002 CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL – ZIDANE’S VOLLEY MASTERCLASS

FOR ME, THE LAST TWO GOALS REMAIN SOME OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL EVER SCORED IN FOOTBALL HISTORY. BUT BEYOND THE GOALS, THERE WAS ONE DEFINING DESIGN ELEMENT THEY ALL HAD IN COMMON – THE TONGUE.

A WHOLE GENERATION GREW UP WITHOUT EXPERIENCING PREDATOR’S GOLDEN ERA OR WEARING A BOOT WITH A TONGUE. HOW COULD WE MAKE IT RELEVANT AGAIN?

THIS CHALLENGE SHAPED OUR APPROACH TO THE PREDATOR 30 YEARS CAMPAIGN. THE LEADERSHIP TEAM WANTED SOMETHING BIG FOR THIS LAUNCH, AND WE DELIVERED SOMETHING TRULY EXTRAORDINARY – SETTING OURSELVES APART FROM THE COMPETITION WITH AN EXECUTION THAT FELT FUTURISTIC YET DEEPLY ROOTED IN PREDATOR’S LEGACY.

JUDE BELLINGHAM AND TRENT ALEXANDER-ARNOLD BECOMING THE GLOBAL FACES OF THIS SILHOUETTE WAS A STROKE OF GENIUS—ARGUABLY ONE OF THE BEST MOVES THE BRAND HAS MADE IN FOOTBALL OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS. THE FUTURE WEARS PREDATOR.

BRINGING THE VISION TO LIFE

THE AMBITION FOR THE PICTURES WAS TO ELEVATE THE PREDATOR CAMPAIGN’S PRODUCT PHOTOGRAPHY, CAPTURING MOVEMENT, PRECISION, AND AUTHENTICITY. OUR CREATIVE DIRECTION FOCUSED ON:

  • KEEPING EYES ON THE BALL, ACTION IN MOTION, AND THE PRODUCT IN THE SPOTLIGHT
  • CANDID, NATURAL GLANCES – NOT POSED, BUT IN THE MOMENT
  • BOLD, UNCONVENTIONAL ANGLES TO CREATE A FRESH, DYNAMIC PERSPECTIVE

WITH A TIGHT TIMELINE, THE CHALLENGE SEEMED OVERWHELMING AT TIMES – BUT IN THE END, WE MADE IT HAPPEN AS A TEAM. AND THAT’S WHAT MAKES THIS PROJECT EVEN MORE SPECIAL.

CREW

 11teamsports
BRAND:  Adidas Football
CREATIVE DIRECTION:  Nelson Ndongala
PHOTOGRAPHY:  Nelson Ndongala
PHOTOGRAPHY COM:  Taya
VIDEO:  Kwami Tender
TALENT:  Futurist