Adidas F50 Laceless Review — The Best Laceless Boots on the Market?

We’re in the golden age of comebacks with regard to the boot world. First, Adidas dropped the Predator 30 (which we reviewed earlier this year), and soon after announced the return of the F50, a beloved boot from the brand that dominated most players’ feet throughout the mid-2010s. Well, it’s back, and been given a revised look and feel, and has been given some of Adidas’ new technology, making it one of the best boots on the market.

Now, the F50 is essentially Adidas’ new speed boot, so it replaces last year’s X CrazyFast, but, with that said, the new F50 doesn’t do away with all the innovations brought about with Adidas’ X line and rather incorporates them into the new silo.

The F50 Elite features a light Fibretouch upper that integrates an adaptable knitted tongue to create a full, one-piece upper. This allows your foot to be fully cushioned, supported, and locked in when moving at top speed. It’s incredibly light and almost paper-thin, but is durable, sturdy and soft and pliable on your foot. Weighing in at just over 200 grams (in a size UK10), these boots are basically the lightest you’ll get.

While the upper is incredibly thin and sock-like, it does feature some coarse texturing around the toe and forefoot area which helps with ball control, but these boots are very-much designed to feel fast and comfortable on your feet, rather than being a control boot.

Adidas’ outsole that they’ve been using on recent speed boots (an all-bladed, chevron-type stud pattern) has been changed to the ‘Sprintframe 360’ outsole. The ‘360’ emphasising that the boots are not just for straight-line speed, but also have some agility movements in mind, adding in four conical studs on the medial and lateral side of the forefoot. This should be a good move and make the boots safer and more appealing to a wider audience who find Adidas’ speed boots of late too aggressive.

There’s no doubt that they still have a fair bit of ‘bite’ to them, but they definitely feel more agile and responsive than the ultra-snappy, super-aggressive Crazyfast soleplate design.

One of the most unique features of the new boot, like F50s of the past, the 2024 F50 comes with two insoles, one for pure speed (SL) and one with extra cushioning to handle more impact absorption. This is only exclusive to the Elite models of the boot but is an awesome touch, allowing you to opt for an extremely light, almost barefoot feel by using the ‘speed’ insoles (perforated for weight-cutting and incredibly thin), or opt for the thicker, more cushioned insoles.

Personally, it’s fantastic to have the option and great for Adidas’ to include both insoles with each purchase (it’s nice to see brands offering a little more given the price of boots), but the weight difference is somewhat negligible and going for the comfort insoles feels a little more familiar (and likely better for the impact of your heel).

The top-tier, most expensive Elite model of the F50 does come in three flavours: the standard Elite, a laceless version, and the F50+ (the ‘plus’ model featuring a Lightstrike Pro insert, which adds extra cushioning).

Regarding the laceless model specifically, the lack of laces is always going to one of those things: you either love or hate it. While many laceless boot models just feel like worse-fitting and a lesser-version of the primary laced edition, the F50 Laceless feels ‘different’. There’s no doubt they’re a little harder to get on due to the tight v-shaped Primeknit collar (which is incredibly soft and snug), but thankfully Adidas’ includes a shoehorn with the boot so you can use it to slip it on a little easier. But once on, the boots are incredibly comfortable with some great lockdown for your foot due to the collar shape and elasticity.

The lockdown is also thanks to a great heel area, which features comfy cushioned pods that ‘slot’ into your heel and ankle bone crevices, making you feel like you’re in the cockpit of an F1 car. On top of that, the laceless design then gives you a truly uninterrupted upper, so you can focus on your dribbling, speed, and not have any distractions when making contact with the ball.

Extending this vehicular analogy, the experience of the F50 Laceless is very-much like that of a hypercar. It may not have all the creature comforts and long-range bells and whistles, but this is a raw, fast, and locked-in sensation that will make you feel like an agile dancer on the pitch, whether you’re chasing down a through-ball in a football match or speeding down the touchline in rugby. The laceless model might not be for everyone due to the lack of adjustability, but the laced version is an excellent option too.

Adidas’ have done a fantastic job to make bring the F50 back in a nostalgic and interesting way, while making a more appealing stud pattern compared to previous speed boots, that will undoubtedly be more suitable for most players.

The Adidas F50 Laceless is priced at R5,299 and available on Adidas’ online store. Prices for the other models (including the more affordable takedown models that lose out on some of the more expensive elements and materials) are below:

• Adidas F50+ — R5,799
• Adidas F50 Elite — R4,799
• Adidas F50 Elite Laceless — R5,299
• Adidas F50 Pro — R2,699
• Adidas F50 League — R1,699
• Adidas F50 Club — R1,099