Shoes Brands Beta

The cleats can actually extend in response to soggy ground conditions. Here's how they work. At a big, blow-out event in London last week, Nike unveiled its splashiest innovation, in advance of the 2010 World Cup: The Mercurial Superfly Vapor II football boot (or "soccer shoe," to Americans). Aside from the hotrod looks, the most intriguing innovation was the "adaptive traction technology," which allows the pegs of the cleats to actively adjust to turf conditions. Say what? How's that happen?