The football boot market is a battleground dominated by giants, but New Balance has been steadily carving out a reputation for quality, comfort, and innovation. With the launch of the Tekela, the brand makes its boldest statement yet in the “control” category. Designed for the visionary playmaker whose game is built on precision and technique, the Tekela promises an intuitive connection to the ball. But does it deliver? We break down the technology, weigh the pros and cons, and determine who this boot is truly for.
What You’ll Find On This Page:
- Tekela v5 Review
- Tekela Magia Takedown
- Tekela Magique Budget Option
- Generations of Tekela Football Boots
When it comes to its football boots, New Balance is headlined by the Furon, the speed boot worn by Sadio Mane, Raheem Sterling, and Bukayo Saka. To be fair, the Tekela, generally considered as a mere support option, does offer something unique from the Furon and is worthy of consideration as a New Balance silo.
Tekela v5 Elite Review
| ELITE ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Live Wire | Dynamic TouchTech upper with Hypoknit stretch fit booty collar Nylon outsole with angled TPU rim studs  |  >> Get Tekela v5 Elite from New Balance | |
New Balance has built the Tekela v5 around what they call the “Four C’s”: Closer, Control, Cinch, and Cosmetic. This philosophy drives the boot’s most significant updates.
The most notable innovation is the new Dynamic TouchTech upper, crafted from a lightweight and pliable microfiber. This material is a significant departure from the previous knit-based models, and the thing is it’s so pliable right out of the box that you don’t need to spend much breaking the boot in. So comfort-wise, it’s really up there with the very best in the market. Nowadays, uppers are usually made thin not just for comfort but also for that barefoot feel for the ball. While we could say that this upper has that sensation, it’s also relatively slightly padded in feel (at least in today’s standards).
Strategically placed debossed channels and nano-printed silicone dots create a haptic, textured surface. This isn’t just for show; it provides zonal grip and an enhanced, truer feel on the ball in all weather conditions, bringing you closer to the action. It’s not going to be Predator-like or even Nike Phantomish when it comes to grip, but it does have that extra sense to aid touch.
The Tekela nylon outsole remains in that it is heavily dominated conicals with angled rim studs on the edges. Snapback is fairly decent (though personally I think it can be improved) and the choice of conicals seem to me the Tekela is the safer option for AG rather than the chevron-dominated Furon. The rim studs might seem insignificant at first, but I feel they are most impactful when doing side-to-side, and it might even have practical application of aiding a goalkeeper when doing that saving dive.
As a narrow feet player, I find it helpful that the boot combines the mouldability and pliability of the upper with a low and pointy toe box to somehow adapt to my foot shape. I also think that the Hypoknit collar does not bunch up that much around the collar. With that said, I have experienced some room here and there, so I see how this can be better for wide feet players and how the boot improves on fit and responsiveness when worn by the right players. Length-wise, it’s for the best for you to go up half-a-size.
But what I really like about the Tekela v5 besides the upper is the sculpted heel. It’s deep, anatomical and feels a lot more free than the uberly stuffed and padded heel of some boots. I find the heel setup the perfect balance for lockdown and comfort. The heel, and the fact that the boot is laced, certainly makes up for whatever I might be lacking in that one-to-one fit when you consider my foot shape and that of the Tekela v5.
How We Tested The Tekela v5
You can read our general boot testing principles here. But at least for the Tekela v5, the star of the testing is the Dynamic TouchTech material and how it gives the v5 its own ground against other football boots. Another point of interest with the Tekela is the inclusion of rim studs and how it might be put to good use on the pitch, as not every boot could say it offers the same stud configuration.
Tekela Pro Takedown
| PRO ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Live Wire | Microfiber PU upper Nylon outsole  |  >> Get Tekela v5 Pro from New Balance | |
For the Tekela at the sub-£150 option, the PU microfibre upper has been more substantial on-feet and the dotted texturing has been changed into a slightly sticky printing. Whether it’s a major or minor change depends on your view. The Pro at least still maintains the nylon outsole of the Elite.
Tekela Team Budget Option
| TEAM ⭐⭐⭐ | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Live Wire | Trophy synthetic upper TPU outsole | | |
This cheap Tekela variant opts for a synthetic upper with a fabric collar. Nylon also gives way for regular TPU as far as the Tekela Team outsole goes. I think this boot ranks relatively low compared to those Academy takedowns that still have some semblance of the core DNA of the silo.
Generations of Tekela Football Boots
The Tekela has gone through quite a number of changes despite being relatively young for a football boot silo. Take a read at the following to see how the boot transformed from one generation to the other.
Tekela 1.0 (2018)
New Balance started the Tekela in 2018 ahead of the World Cup to replace the Vizaro line. The beginning of the Tekela saw it equipped with an NB70 synthetic upper with the first iteration of the Kinetic Stitch texturing. It had a high-cut neoprene collar that also comprised the extended tongue piece. The lacing system was noticeably shallow.
Furon 2.0 (2019)
A year later, New Balance updated the Tekela by shortening the tongue and deepening the lacing system. Together with the fully-bonded no-sew seam technology towards the tongue and collar, the deeper lacing system helped improved the fit and lockdown of the Tekela in v2.
Furon 3.0 (2020)
With the v3 in 2020, the New Balance Tekela turned into a laceless, knitted football boot for the first time. The Kinetic Stitch texturing transitioned away from its curved webbing design and towards a branch-like aesthetic that still covered much of the upper. The v3 finished off with a high-cut collar.
Furon 3+ (2021)
New Balance was right not to name this release the v4 in 2021, considering that the only changes applied were the form of the Kinetic Stitch (which still looked similar to the v3’s, to be honest), the slight lowering of the collar height, and the reengineering on the knitted upper itself to make it more pliable and comfortable. The 3+ was the last Tekela generation to use the stud configuration implemented by the v1.
Furon 4 (2022)
It came without saying that every new generation brought with it some reconfiguration of an existing feature from the previous one. And so what stood remarkably with the v4 was actually the introduction of a laced low-cut side-by-side with the usual laceless high-cut Tekela. The low-cut was preferred by the likes of Harvey Elliott, who sometimes received signature pairs in that version.
Furon 4+ (2024)
While there was still a laceless version, it was in the 4+ that New Balance began transitioning the Tekela to a low-cut, laced football boot once again. There was a bit of an update with the texturing of the upper, but the soleplate remained with the combination of conicals with angled rim studs. Endrick had his Tekela signatures with the low-cut 4+.
