New Balance is entering football, the American kind, with a new line of high-performance cleats. Surprisingly, it’s a first for the nearly 120-year-old label who has roots in New England, which historically has been a major hub for the gridiron dating all the way back to the game’s founding by Walter Camp in the mid 19th century.

Having debuted at the 2024 NFL Combine in Detroit, New Balance’s inaugural cleats will be dedicated to the speedsters and athletes in the trenches. Starting with the former, the Prodigy is a lightweight shoe that is engineered to tear defensive coverages apart, as receivers, such as newly drafted Arizona Cardinal and New Balance sponsored-wideout, Marvin Harrison Jr., is likely to inflict in the upcoming season. For the lineman and backers, the aptly named Fortress boasts a more sturdy midfoot to bolster added stability and constructed with a dual-injection nylon and TPU plate for digging into blitzes, or alternatively, those looking to sack the quarterback.

“We came into this process with fresh eyes,” said New Balance senior product manager, Matt Nuzzo, in a statement. “Before we start building any products, we make sure we understand the athletes’ needs and desires to help them perform at their highest level. All athletes want to be fast and comfortable, and we spent three years prototyping, tweaking, testing and learning to deliver a uniquely New Balance experience for athletes that blends both performance and comfort.”

Both the Prodigy and Fortress retail for $184.99 USD and are built with FuelCell inserts for a balance of comfort and jolt with each step. “There has been an evolution to the athlete as the game has progressed,” added Dave Millman, New Balance’s general manager of field of play. “Players need to move faster on both sides of the ball. Through these progressions, we wanted to make sure we’re building the footwear that evolves along with them.”

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