It’s been 18 years since Nike’s legendary “Secret Tournament” advert that coincided with the brand’s approach to the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Directed by Monty Python member Terry Gilliam with a budget of around $100 million, the commercial featured “referee” Eric Cantona and 24 superstars of the game (Thierry Henry, Francesco Totti, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Luís Figo, Patrick Vieira, Edgar Davids, etc.) and Junkie XL’s new remix of Elvis Presley’s “A Little Less Conversation”.
There was also a lot of scorpion imagery and branding due to the fictional tournament using “Scorpion KO” rules — three-on-three, first-goal-wins.
Now, evoking both the scorpion imagery and the cage in which the footballers played, Nike has released the Phantom GT Scorpion cleat.
“With the Phantom GT Scorpion, the generational link between ‘Secret Tournament’ and boot materializes through a chrome upper and plate referencing the tournament’s ball, painted brush strokes mimicking the on-ship location and the yellow/black hazard stripes framing the goals. Additionally, a lateral scorpion graphic, featuring the phrases ‘Secret Tournament’ and ‘Engineered For Skills,’ updates the original scorpion logo,” reads the Nike press release.
The cleats are available for purchase over at Nike.com.
