Last updated:

De Bruyne’s Football Boots

Dean Ariola

Kevin de Bruyne usually wears the Nike Phantom, a boot built around the concepts of control and agility. The silo surely fits the mould of de Bruyne who seems to be able to put the ball at the right place at the right time. Whether it is through an accurate cross, a splitting through ball or a mesmerising dribble, Kevin de Bruyne is a player that justifies the existence of a boot that will aid ball touch and grip like the one he is wearing now.

Phantom Luna 2 Mad Ready

De Bruyne not only had that Man City link with Erling Haaland by the early months of January 2024, he also had that Nike Phantom connection with him. With his striker teammate preferring the low-cut GX 2, the talented midfielder went with the collared Luna 2, building on his switch to the Phantom Luna 1 some months prior. That Phantom kindred had been enhanced as both players wore the player-wide Mad Ready release.

Peak Ready Phantom Luna

De Bruyne made a triumphant return from injury in January 2024 wearing the Peak Ready Phantom Luna I. It had the thematic cyan colourway in full display, with the bespoke ‘United’ graphic applied tonally. The Cyclone 360, one of the Luna I’s highlight feature, stood out in violet.

Ready Phantom Luna

Before his injury towards the last quarter of 2023, Kevin de Bruyne rocked the crimson Phantom Luna from the Nike Ready Pack. De Bruyne had shifted to the other Phantom to represent the women-specific Nike boot in the men’s game.

Yellow ‘Luminous’ GX

Whereas the likes of Mason Mount and Phil Foden wore the low version, Kevin de Bruyne stayed to represent the high-cut Phantom GX. And did so again when Nike released the last pack for the 2022/23 season that included his boot of choice with a bright, popping yellow Gripknit upper.

Blaze Nike Phantom GX

Whereas most of the GX players remained with the Blue and White Blast GX (at least for the first few months of 2023, De Bruyne moved on and wore the yellow-orange GX from the Nike Blaze Pack. Inspired by the visuals of a flame, the Blaze GX has a glossy deep red tone on the outsole before going back up the upper that has a clear orange knit pattern and a lighter one for the base.

Nike ‘Blast‘ Phantom GX

With all Nike players switching to their respective boots from the ‘Blast’ on-pitch 2023 pack, De Bruyne wore the Phantom GX that had a bright sky blue Gripknit upper against a white quarter. It was the first GX that the midfielder had after missing out on the pink launch GX, which was debuted by Nike Phantom players who went deep into the World Cup knockout stages.

Nike World Cup ‘Generation‘ Phantom GT

De Bruyne joined Belgium’s modern ‘golden generation’ in the 2022 World Cup wearing the black and copper Nike Phantom GT 2 DF dedicated for the said competition. With Belgium unable to reach the deeper part of the knockout stages, the midfielder failed to be part of the Nike Phantom players to debut the new-gen Phantom GX (he did wear them as expected at the resumption of club football after the World Cup).

Kevin de Bruyne Special Boot History

Player Inspired De Bruyne Vision 2 Boots

Player Inspired De Bruyne Vision 2 Boots

Nike dropped a special white upper on the Phantom VSN 2. The tag name for the boots was Player Inspired, a tribute to players who control the game from the centre of the pitch.

Nike Phantom Fire Boots Pack

Nike Phantom Fire Boots Pack

Turn up the heat with the Nike Phantom Fire pack, designed for title winners to wear from last season, the Mango Venom has T90 vibes and the Vision is the more understated boot in the grey with mango details.

Nike EA Sports Phantom Vision

Nike EA Sports Phantom Vision

The third Nike & EA Sports collaberations follows Superfly and Hypervenom models with a Phantom VSN version in 2018. To be worn on pitch by Kevin De Bruyne you can also access them in the game & wear them yourself on the field.

What boots does KDB wear?

Kevin de Bruyne’s long history with Nike started with the Mercurials. His pre-2010 boots were predominantly Vapor Superfly before spending the rest of the first quarter of the past decade with the Vapors, specifically the Vapors VIII to IX. By 2014 he went with the Superfly IV, up until 2016 when he had stints with the Superfly V and Magista Obra II. He continued with the Magista line, becoming a face for the Magista Obra until 2018, when they were replaced by the Phantom VSN. If Nike were to assemble a Mercurial team with MbappeRonaldo, and Lewandowski, Kevin de Bruyne and his Phantom boots would surely be a great fit as the playmaker behind them.

Kevin de Bruyne has spent most of his playing career in the English Premier League, with Manchester City but had stints in other countries top leagues especially at the beginning of his senior career. In 2008 was promoted to the first team of Genk and helped the club win the 2009 Belgian Cup Final and the Belgian Pro League in the 2010-2011 season, and the Belgian Super Cup in 2011. He got his first taste of Premier League action in January 2012 upon signing with Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea, he continued his development though with a season-long loan to Bundesliga side Werden Bremen in the 2012-2013 season before getting sold permanently to another Bundesliga team in January 2014, VFL Wolfsburg where he would be part of the 2015 DFB-Pokal and DFL Super Cup-winning team. By 2016 he joined the blue half of Mancunian football with Manchester City and becoming a pillar of Pep Guardiola’s attacking side. His play with Manchester City resulted in the club’s EFL Cup trophies in 2016, 2018, and 2019, the FA Cup and Community Shield silverware in 2019, and the back-to-back Premier League titles from 2017 to 2019.

Advanced playmaking is a standout attribute of the Belgian. Joining the likes of Mahrez, Bernardo Silva, and Walker on Manchester City’s attacking right side, de Bruyne offers accurate crosses and goal threats from outside the penalty box. This has been recognized as he has bagged the Premier League Playmaker of the Season at the end of 2017-2018 on top of the numerous individual awards he has already collected. His tenacity in pressing and defensive tackles coupled with his playmaking on top makes him a high-quality free-roaming number 8 as well.

Author

Dean Ariola

Dean has worked Chief writer at the Black & Orange team since 2020, he has an indepth knowledge of all the soccer shoes from the big brands, you have him to thank for all the updates to our Boot Secrets guide and he is first on the scene with all the new releases for you!

Recent Articles