Mizuno Alpha 2 is the Japanese brand’s attempt to enter the mainstream synthetic boot market, a deviation from the usual K-leather offerings of the boot maker. Mizuno Alpha directly competes with the more popular speed boots like the Nike Mercurial, adidas X and Puma Ultra.
What You’ll Find On This Page:
- Common Questions Asked About The Alpha 2
- Mizuno Alpha 2 Tiers
- Our Mizuno Alpha 2 Expert Review
- From K-Leather to Synthetic: How the Mizuno Alpha Came to Be
Common Questions Asked About The Alpha 2:
How much does Mizuno Alpha weigh?
In a size 9 US, the Mizuno Alpha weighs 190 grams.
What boots does Sergio Ramos wear?
At least for the Alpha, Mizuno was able to secure the signature of Sergio Ramos to headline the said boot. Arguably nearing the end of his career, Ramos still participates in high-level football competitions to this point and still offers some marketable sense to the silo.
Mizuno Alpha 2 Tiers
Just like any other brand, Mizuno provides top-tier and budget executions for their silos. Here is how it looks like for the Alpha speed boots:
Emphasising the uniqueness of Japanese quality, Mizuno labels it’s most premium tier Made in Japan and their second takedown model Elite (implying that the top-level boots of other brands are simply second best to what Mizuno provides). But, at least for the Alpha silo, the only difference between the MIJ and Elite is that the microfibre lining has more volume in the latter. Select is where you can see a significant change in Mizuno’s attempt to cut corners.
Our Mizuno Alpha 2 Expert Review
Five Things You’ll Want to Know:
- Only boot in the current lineup without K-leather
- Focused on speed
- Costs around £300
- Synthetic-based
- The replacement silo for the Rebula
✔️ Pros
- Has the capability to adapt to both narrow and wide foot shapes; breaking in and heating up the internal PU sheet helps the upper expand more a bit and take more width
- Excellent lockdown because of the zeroglide liner and the heel fit combining well with the u-throat construction and deep central lacing system
- Has the modern speed boot soleplate benefit of being snappy and responsive
- One, if not the lightest speed boot out there
- Upper has a nice balance of structure and pliability
- Truly lightweight and perfect for those who like a barefoot touch on the ball
- Forgiving on AG pitches
❌ Cons
- Really, really expensive
- Sizing could be tricky; pointy shape might cause some extra space on the toes, though sizing down might be too snug
- Bested by other boots at least in terms of comfort
- Enerzy foam more on minimal cushioning rather than the marketed energy return
Going out of your comfort zone is always a risk. And judging by its build and performance, the Mizuno Alpha 2 is a risk well taken!
Boot Rankings, Best For…
From K-Leather to Synthetic: How the Mizuno Alpha Came to Be
Being that Mizuno is a brand specialising in K-leather football boots, the surprise is not so much that the Alpha succeeded a K-leather silo, but what specific K-leather silo it replaces. It might be easy to think that the Alpha could have supplanted the Morelia Neo, but the synthetic Mizuno boot actually succeeded a model that was built on control.
Rebula V1 (2017)
The story began in 2017 when the Mizuno thought of creating an advanced form of K-leather boot. With that, they decided to move on from the Wave Ignitus (see the 2022 remake here). As you can see, the frame is fused in the Alpha has its roots with the very first Rebula, which incorporated a CT Frame that enhanced ball touch and spin on the forefoot, stability around the midfoot and heel lockdown on the rear. CT Frame enabled the Rebula to avoid the need for the stitching and perforations, which were the traditional source of K-leather upper structure and stability but susceptible to water intake.
Rebula 2 V1 (2018)
A year later, Mizuno updated the Rebula to double down on the touch and stability component of the CT Frame by reengineering its design and shape. The most obvious difference between the 2 and the V1 was the difference on the heel makeup, where the former used a different material instead of extending the main upper and CT Frame to that part of the boot like the V1 did.
Rebula 3 (2019)
While the core DNA was still there, the Rebula 3 did introduce some major changes that made it standout versus the previous Rebulas. The K-leather had been limited from the midfoot to the forefoot, and a synthetic mesh comprised the quarter that was also covered with non-stretch strips/webbing. The lacing was more central, and the leather became relatively thinner. Whereas the V1 and 2 were more narrow-fitting, the Rebula 3 became more forgiving and allowed flat-footed/wide-footed players to somehow fit in.
Rebula Cup (2020)
At this point the only thing that remained constant with the Rebula was the D-Flex groove soleplate, where much of the flex was coming from the medial side with the torsion stiffener bar flowing through the lateral side. This resulted to a flex point that felt more anatomical than those from other mainstream boots. The upper told a different story though as the CT Frame was totally dropped in favour of memory foam pods as the new touch and control elements. Those fused elements made the Wave Cup influence on the Rebula Cup quite clear. The boot wrapped it up with the FT Grip Coating to give the upper some sticky ball grip attribute.
Alpha (2020)
The biggest change between the Alpha 1 and the Alpha 2 was the addition of a PU sheet in the latter, between the frame and suede liner. The aim was that once the sheet is broken down and heated up, it will help expand the upper a bit more, thus making it more adaptable to wider foot shapes. Karvo RS was made thinner on the Alpha 2 as well to cater those who find the outsole very stiff on the first generation.
