Asics holds 60 per cent of the AFLW boot census
Asics is on the feet of 60 per cent of the 390 mapped AFLW players and 44 per cent of 811 in the AFL, and one boot is doing much of the work.
EvidenceOf the 390 mapped AFLW players in the census, 235 wear Asics. That is 60 per cent of the league in one brand, which in any other industry would bring a knock on the door from the competition regulator.
Aine Tighe at Fremantle has her own page here, and behind every page like it sits a single row: player, club, boot. The rows only exist where we can actually identify what someone is wearing, so the 60 per cent is a share of the 390 feet we could name and not of the whole league.
The men's count
Of the 811 AFL players we have mapped, 356 wear Asics, or 44 per cent. That is the biggest share in the league and still short of half, so the brand leads without owning the room.
The boot carrying the biggest single share of that count is the Asics Lethal Testimonial 4 IT, a kangaroo leather model we rate four out of five. It is the best-rated Asics boot on our pages.
One boot, 117 players
The Asics Menace 5 is on the feet of 117 AFLW players, the biggest single block of feet in the women's game. It is also a boot we rate three out of five.
A census measures what got bought, a rating measures what we make of it, and a very popular boot need not be the sharpest one in the rack.
The case for the Menace 5 is fit. Asics builds a knit Mono-Sock collar into it, so the ankle is held by the boot itself rather than by how hard you pull the laces. The upper is synthetic leather meant to keep its shape across a long season. Underfoot there is FLYTEFOAM, and the sockliner is dyed in a process Asics says cuts water use by about 33 per cent. Nowhere does that list promise to make anyone faster.
Adidas holds its share
Adidas is on 75 AFL feet, 9 per cent of the 811 mapped players, and 31 in the AFLW, 8 per cent of the 390. Asics, Nike and Puma all gain or give up ground when the census crosses from one competition to the other. Adidas turns up at nearly the same size in both, which looks like a brand nobody switches to and nobody switches away from.
The boot carrying most of the load on the men's side is the Adidas Predator Elite FG, on 38 players. It also carries a five out of five from us, which puts it among our best-reviewed boots, so the third-placed brand in the women's count owns one of the strongest-rated boots in it.
The engineering is NanoStrike+ tacky rubber zones, a PowerSpine for midfoot stability and a Strikeframe plate for traction. Folded in among it is a promise of buttery-soft touch and powerful strikes at the same time, which is a fair ask of one layer of mesh.
Share is a measure of shopping habits, not quality, and Adidas is the clearest case of the two running on separate tracks.
The tail
Past the four brands that share most of the room, the census thins out quickly. New Balance has 7 AFL players at 1 per cent and 3 AFLW players, also 1 per cent. Mizuno has 4 AFL players and 1 AFLW player, and both of those figures round to 0 per cent. Concave has 3 AFL players at 0 per cent and 2 AFLW players at 1 per cent.
The small numbers are a scaled-down copy of the big ones, which suggests the tail is not where anyone changes their mind about a brand.
Concave's 2 AFLW players are enough for 1 per cent; its 3 AFL players are not. A brand's whole presence in a national competition can sit inside a rounding decision.
See you out there, from the What's Worn crew.
Illustrations are AI-generated and representational. Boot details and availability change; check with the retailer before buying.
Start with these
Evidence plates - the boots this entry is about
Recorded by Bryn & Steve
Subject boot: Asics Menace 5 - 117 mapped players
Counts: the What's Worn census