The first thing to bear in mind is that football boots should fit snugly on the foot – they should even feel a little tight. Under no circumstances should they be loose-fitting, as is the case with running shoes or trainers. So, if you’re thinking of buying boots one size smaller than you usually wear, let us tell you straight away: please don’t do it. Nowadays, the vast majority of football boots on the market are made from synthetic materials, and brands already take this into account; as a result, they design their lasts and adapt the fit to the foot in a different way.
What's my football boot size?
Now that we know how football boots should fit, it’s normal that – if, for example, we wear a size 42 in everyday shoes – our size won’t vary too much when choosing football boots or even futsal shoes. Even so, the best way to get it right is to measure your foot. And now we’re going to let you in on a secret: there’s a common factor across all footwear brands, and that is that the JPN size never changes, regardless of the brand. Why? Because this size refers to the length of the foot in centimetres.
Once we have measured both the length and the width of the foot, it is important to emphasise the importance of measuring the width as well, as this will enable us to identify our foot type and choose the boots that best suit it. Currently, there are boots on the market which, although they may be the same length – for example, 27 cm – do not fit all feet measuring that same 27 cm in the same way, due to differences in their last. Some boots are wider, others are tighter-fitting, and others have a narrower shape at the front. Therefore, we mustn’t forget that, when measuring our feet, we need to take several factors into account to make the right choice.
Let’s look at an example: if our foot measures 27 cm and we currently play in adidas boots – which in this case would be a size 42 2/3 – but we want to switch to Puma boots, our new size would be 42. It may seem like there’s only half a size’s difference, but those of us who’ve been playing football for many years know that this difference can be crucial.
In short, given how important it is to choose the right size for your football boots, it’s best to make sure you select the one that fits your foot properly. To do this, the best thing is to measure your foot. If you opt for this method, don’t forget to follow all our recommendations.
