The new PUMA Tennis collection looks to PUMA’s Tennis archive to inspire the future and celebrate the brand’s rich sports heritage of being Forever Faster. With 2015 marking the 30th anniversary of Boris Becker’s unseeded win at Wimbledon, at the time the 17 year old German was the youngest to win this title in his signature PUMA mid tops.
PUMA entered the tennis world soon after the company was established and launched its first professional tennis shoe, the Match, in the 60s. Some Match shoes were perforated for breathability. All saw records tumble. Throughout the 70s and 80s, PUMA unleashed a flurry of performance enhancing tennis shoes: all white leather, occasional coloured Formstrips. They were high quality, made in Europe, tough to replicate and worn by the best athletes including Guillermo Villas, Martina Navratilova and of course Boris Becker.
The products were exactly what players needed for grand slam level play. And they quickly put PUMA at the top of its game. PUMA designers were considering human factors that other companies weren’t thinking of yet. Their heightened awareness of ergonomics helped them pioneer a new approach to footwear that allowed PUMA athletes to outlast the competition.
This season, many styles filed under ‘firsts’ and ‘onlys’ are reissued. Some are altered. Some are authentic to a fault. The Match 74 is updated with added off-court appeal. Panels that were originally added to prevent players slipping on court now feature premium suede colour pops.
“PUMA’s desire to be Forever Faster is long established. The brand’s rich tennis heritage has seen some of the games most celebrated athletes stalk the baseline in their PUMA Tennis shoes. Whilst the innovations that helped PUMA redefine tennis product and performance throughout the 60s, 70s and 80s may have been eclipsed the timeless silhouettes continue to endure off-court.” – Adam Petrick, Brand Director