Phaidon

The first book to chart the unprecedented history of Nike’s iconic football boots, from the evolution of their design to the legendary stars who have worn them Football (or soccer) is surrounded by a particular mythology. As the world’s most popular sport, its players and iconic performances have become part of public consciousness – and so have the boots that footballers wear. Nike Football Boots charts the history of the brand’s football journey, from the all-black leather boots introduced in the early 70s – the first of any shoe to feature the famous swoosh – to the present day, through four key product lines that encapsulate Nike’s design ethos: Tiempo, Mercurial, Total 90, and Phantom. Along the way, readers will discover stories behind the boots worn by football’s greatest names, including Brazilian striker Ronaldo, Portuguese phenom Cristiano Ronaldo, US Women’s National Team star Megan Rapinoe, and emerging French icon Kylian Mbappé, among others. Lavishly illustrated with 500 images, Nike Football Boots showcases boot close-ups, on-feet shots, concepts, posters and advertising, film screenshots, material swatches, sketches, prototypes and ephemera from the Department of Nike Archives (DNA). A 12-page glossy insert displays every model of boot highlighted in the DNA, from 1971 to today. This visual homage to the sport is also an engaging read: celebrated author Caleb Azumah Nelson sets the scene for each chapter, discussing how the culture and style of the decade influenced each boot’s design, while historian Thomas Turner delves deep into the technical innovations that made each boot so successful. An introduction by curator Eleanor Watson puts football design more globally into context. Perfectly timed with the kick-off of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Nike Football Boots is an essential volume for football fans of all stripes.

‘A highly entertaining romp through what the world might have looked like, had fate chosen a different path.’ – GuardianDiscover more than 300 extraordinary unbuilt architecture projects that never made it off the drawing boardOrganized geographically across nearly 400 pages, this monumental homage to architectural ambition includes proposed projects of all types – from skyscrapers, museums, churches, and bridges to theme parks, casinos, opera houses, and even a floating theater boat that resembles a UFO. Seen together, the projects conjure a strange and wonderful new world while offering insight into how our built environment been conceived and developed over the last 100 years.Readers will discover futuristic visions from architectural icons such as Frank Lloyd Wright, Le Corbusier, Mies, and Louis Kahn, alongside more contemporary proposals from Zaha Hadid, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, Steven Holl, Norman Foster, and Daniel Libeskind. Each project is brought to life through deeply researched text and a wealth of imagery, including previously unpublished prints, paintings, drawings, etchings, preparatory sketches, and more.At times impractical or fanciful but always imaginative and ambitious, the projects in Atlas of Never Built Architecture reveal the incredible diversity of ideas that have emerged from the world’s most influential architects.

The in-depth story of one of the world’s most innovative and influential design companiesIn the recent history of contemporary design and architecture, no company has had more influence than Vitra. From the 1950s to the present day, Vitra has worked with succeeding generations of designers – from Ray and Charles Eames to Frank Gehry and Zaha Hadid, to Ron Arad, Jasper Morrison, and Virgil Abloh. With its forward-thinking approach, Vitra has defined and shaped the way that we live and work.Written by Deyan Sudjic, Vitra: The Anatomy of a Design Company, tells the story of the three generations behind Vitra. Driven by a sense of cultural and social mission, Vitra has had a major influence on every aspect of contemporary design, from architecture to graphics, photography, product design, and the landscape.It has shaped our understanding of such major figures as Jean Prouvé and Verner Panton. It has encouraged designers at the start of their careers including Jasper Morrison and Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec. It has safeguarded the archives of such key figures as Luis Barragan and Alexander Girard, and built one of the world’s most important design museums.The book also features inserts written by design consultant and writer Karen Stein, as well as a photographic essay by acclaimed architectural photographer Iwan Baan.Spanning more than 450 pages and over 400 illustrations, this substantial volume covers Vitra’s working relationship with designers, the rich architectural heritage of the Vitra Campus, with buildings by Tadao Ando, Herzog & de Meuron, and Alvaro Siza. It provides an essential account of contemporary design history, offers a unique insight into the role of design in business, and documents the nature of a design process that results in successful products.