Copy linkFacebookXPinterestEmailShare this article 0Join the conversationFollow usAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleNewsletterSubscribe to our newsletterThis summer, FourFourTwo spent time at the Boston headquarters of American footwear and sporting apparel giant New Balance.When you think of New Balance, your mind likely conjures an image of stylish trainers - a sight becoming increasingly ubiquitous across the United Kingdom. But as FFT discovered, the brand is about so much more than snazzy footwear.The company is at the forefront of sports product design, manufacturing all manner of apparel, footwear, equipment, and accessories alongside an ever-growing list of elite club partnerships. This season, New Balance manufactures kits for a host of top European sides, including, but not limited to, FC Porto, Lille OSC, Bayer Leverkusen, and Atalanta.Bespoke, not boutique: The New Balance wayUpon visiting New Balance HQ in Boston, Massachusetts, FFT was given an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of the company's state-of-the-art facilities.The New Balance campus houses official training facilities for both the Boston Bruins (NHL) and the Boston Celtics (NBA), as well as the TRACK - a multi-purpose athletic and events complex of which the brand is understandably proud. You may like I wore the Bukayo Saka New Balance x Stone Island boots debuted by England star at the World Cup. Heres what I thought of unique design, functionality and Arsenal input Puma launch new Ultra Nitro 7 boot dubbed 'the future of football' after consulting pro and amateur players to deliver what they want Michael Olise turns down at least �2 million every year so he can play in football boots that match his kit High-Fashion PerformanceThe facility features a 200-metre, hydraulically banked indoor track engineered for high-speed track-and-field competitions. It is backed by a massive athlete warm-up area that can be rolled away and replaced with a series of small-sided 3G football pitches - because, of course, it can.Accommodating nearly 5,000 spectators, the venue sits below the New Balance Sports Research Lab, where high-tech innovation and rigorous product testing take place daily. And that is only scratching the surface.Get FourFourTwo NewsletterThe best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.Turning back to fashion for a moment, you may have noticed new Stone Island x New Balance gear doing the rounds this summer. Blending 90s football culture with textile innovation and Bostons high-performance sports science, the drop is part of an ongoing collaboration described as "incredibly complementary" by Rob Sheldon, New Balance's director of global football product."We bring innovation, the shoe-making technology and knowhow, specificity around the athletes and the athlete needs," Sheldon tells FFT. "[Stone Island] bring this wealth of expertise around materialisation, around colour and dye application."Equally, the cultural currency that is inherent within Stone Island means we just had this really complementary element where we can lean on the strengths of both brands and go 'this is something where we can offer a very unique perspective.'" What to read next Sokito Scudetta Biotouch FG review: Better, softer and still green the best eco-conscious football boot just got an upgrade Exclusive: Eberechi Eze says Bukayo Saka could succeed in another career in chess Exclusive: England's Eberechi Eze tells FourFourTwo his two World Cup heroes The New Balance x Stone Island collaboration pieces do not come cheap, but for good reason: they are exceptionally high quality. What brand wouldn't want its best-in-class products perceived as such? And with marquee athletes Bukayo Saka and Endrick fronting the campaign, exclusivity is guaranteed.Endrick's family was reportedly so overwhelmed by the lengths to which New Balance went in welcoming him to the brand that they burst into tears during a presentation showcasing their boy. Endrick's mother subsequently handed out sweets to those in attendance.The New Balance x Stone Island capsule features the new Furon Elite v9 speed boot, worn by Endrick and Saka at the 2026 World Cup. FFT had the pleasure of testing out the boots - complete with heat-reactive artwork that changes colour based on body heat and temperature shifts as you sprint - an innovation years in the making."If you take the Furon v9, we began that cycle back in 2022. So, that's really where we're identifying the aspects of the Furon v8 that the athlete really responded well to."Things that you're going to retain, you try to augment, we develop it in terms of what are the aspects or attributes that we're trying to characterise for the Furon v9 [through] a lens of player performance. What is going to enhance and yield the best outcome from a player?"We then bring Stone Island through that process - it's that same consideration at the centre: this absolutely has to answer the needs of the athletes," Sheldon adds.Inside The LabWe were also given the elite athlete treatment inside the Sports Research Lab, touring all the bells and whistles a state-of-the-art facility could possibly offer. If we are being completely honest, much of the advanced science went over our heads - our school science lessons were usually spent doodling starting XIs in the back of an exercise book.Rest assured, even for a self-proclaimed Luddite, it was deeply impressive. The facility features a machine nicknamed "The Beast," which can simulate the force of an NFL defensive lineman. To put that into context: the average NFL defensive lineman stands 6'3" tall and weighs 140 kilograms. "The Beast" feels entirely appropriate.Additionally, there is a 3D body scanner that takes 150 measurements in an instant, alongside an environmental chamber housing "Andy" - a mannequin that actually sweats to test how the human body responds to specific fabrics.All this technology just to kit out an East London DJ two-stepping behind the decks in a pair of New Balance trainers might feel like overkill, but that is precisely the point: New Balance wants the everyday consumer to enjoy the exact same quality experience as an elite athlete."Making something fit for purpose, and that insight-driven creation, but quality and craftsmanship is something that's been central to the to the brand ethos since its inception."We want to continue to augment that and make sure that, irrespective of whether you're buying a lifestyle product, a running shoe, everybody knows that New Balance stands for for craft and quality," Michael Mills, senior category manager at New Balance, tells FFT.Challenging Legacy GiantsNew Balance is a bespoke sporting apparel brand, but by no means a boutique one. Compared to its competitors, the brand maintains a more selective group of club kit partnerships, allowing it to offer a tailored service with the genuine personal touch Endrick's family experienced."There's a deep appreciation [for New Balance], and we get a great degree of new consumers, but equally existing consumers coming back to the brand as well, and that's incremental in a space that is mature."It's generational brands that we're amongst as well. So, being able to get to a place where we're very recognised on the field of play in all forms of the game across the globe really speaks to the progress that we've made over the last 10 years."The company's Warrior subsidiary established an initial beachhead in English football through a landmark kit deal with Liverpool in 2012, before signing fellow Premier League side Stoke City two years later.The brand was subsequently catapulted into the wider footballing consciousness during Liverpool's late-2010s, early-2020s domestic and European triumphs, with those iconic kits sporting the highly recognisable "NB" logo. On the player front, Bukayo Saka, Eberechi Eze, Raheem Sterling, and Harvey Elliott have all joined the New Balance stable in recent years.Brick by brick, club by club, boot by boot, New Balance is chipping away at the dominance of legacy sportswear giants. If not already, they will soon be making their competitors sweat - just like Andy the mannequin.Joe DonnohueSocial Links NavigationSenior Digital WriterJoe joined FourFourTwo as senior digital writer in July 2025 after five years covering Leeds United in the Championship and Premier League. Joe's 'Mastermind' specialist subject is 2000s-era Newcastle United having had a season ticket at St. James' Park for 10 years before relocating to Leeds and later London. Joe takes a keen interest in youth football, covering PL2, U21 Euros, as well as U20 and U17 World Cups in the past, in addition to hosting the industry-leading football recruitment-focused SCOUTED podcast. He is also one of the lucky few to have 'hit top bins' as a contestant on Soccer AM. It wasn't a shin-roller.
