Seriously Impressive

If there is one thing people can say about this blog, it is that I have not reviewed enough New Balance boots over the years. It is not like I have anything against the brand – far from it – they just always seem to fall to the wayside when it comes to brands to review. I have been aiming to try and correct this mistake over the course of this year, firstly with my review of the 442 Elite. New Balance has probably never been in a stronger position in terms of their lineup, with almost every boot seemingly easy to recommend. The Furon is definitely one I have had my eye on reviewing for a while, and I even tried the original Furon a decade ago. With the launch of the New Balance Furon V8 Elite, the silo has gone from a want to try to a must try. The Unisport 30th Anniversary collab colourway is a piece of art, so I did not want to miss out. New Balance has worked wonders with the Furon V8 Elite, and the Hypoknit upper is an excellent experience. In fact, for me it is the best knit upper I have experienced.

Fit and Feel

The softness of the knit from out of the box is seriously impressive. It is very soft but also has a nice backing material, so it does not feel overly thin. The quality of the knit is good and does feel like a premium product. I normally do not talk about looks, but this colourway is superb. Unisport and New Balance have made something very special here. Going back to the knit, I do appreciate that NB have not tried to try do anything wild with the upper, and it feels very consistent across the boot.

There is a collection of every so slightly grippy dots located on the top of the foot where the central lacing would normally go, but in practice I do not really feel much of an effect on the ball. The same can be said for the collection of slight indentations that form a triangle on the top of the forefoot. It is possible that the boot would look less interesting with these elements, so that is my guess for their inclusion.

On feet, the striking impression of the upper continues. The boots feel very comfortable on feet, and the overall fit is remarkable. I have a narrow to medium foot which normally means that there are some awkward creases in the upper the first time I wear a boot. This is not the case with the Furon V8 Elite. It wraps my feet really well, and yet the upper feels like there is a slight stretchiness to it that seems like it will allow for wider foot types to fit in the boot fairly easily as well.

The New Balance Furon V8 Elite also only takes a short time to break in, with the boots feeling ready to go within a shorter 30 odd minute session. This is again down to the fact that the Hypoknit upper is so soft out of the box. The mesh backing also helps with this as it is also very soft yet has just enough cushioning to add that extra bit of comfort. That comfort has been helpful, especially as the temperatures have been rising, hitting about 35 degrees (95 degrees Fahrenheit, I was wrong in my IG reel) during my last session. And yet there have been no hotspots to speak of throughout the testing period.

As many readers of the blog will know, I am very harsh when it comes to the heel fit and comfort with boots. Here, the Furon V8 impresses again with the excellent shaping of this area of the boot as well as the seemingly perfect amount of cushioning for me. It wraps the heel nice and snugly without feeling overly tight. It is surprisingly deeper than it might look as well, and there is a lot of structure for supporting the back of the foot.

When it comes to lockdown, it is decent. There has been no slipping, and part is down to the grippier insole, which is a nice insole that is slightly more cushioned than other speed boot insoles. I personally wish the lacing system was a bit deeper, but it does make some sense why they took this approach to the lacing set up (more on that later). However, you are not going to get crazy lockdown in these like you would in say a pair of Mizuno Alpha II Japan. On the flipside, it is definitely good enough to the point I do not think about it when playing in the boots.

There is one other noticeable drawback, especially when it comes to the softness of the upper. The side to side stability is not as structured as most people will want from their speed boots. Again, this is not to say it is bad, but it is noticeable. I personally do not mind as much, given that my go to boots are normally made of soft leather, but something like the Sokito Scudetta offers a lot more in terms of stability when cutting and running.

As far as sizing, I went true to size in my US and Japanese CM sizing and the fit was perfect. If your feet are wider, half size up might be better, however, I would recommend you try on the boots first to double check. For me, true to size is the way to go.

On the Ball

New Balance has to take plaudits on how lovely the touch on the ball in the Furon V8 is. It is super close to the ball, but I appreciate that slight bit of cushioning on the upper. Again, this is definitely more like other speed boots, but softer than most and I love taking the ball out of the air with these. The first touch feels sensual and has to be my favourite feeling knit boot on the market in terms of touch.

While there is no pingy sensation like other more classic speed boots, there is still great feedback when hitting the ball with extra power. Those grippy dots on the upper do not feel like they add a lot in terms of feel on the ball, but they do provide a nice little visual guide when hitting some shots with power.

Dribbling almost feels effortless in the Furon V8, and I find the upper responds nicely to little, quick touches on the ball. What is also appreciated is the fact the upper is mostly uniform in shape, which allows for good feeling on the ball no matter what part of the foot is used to dribble.

Now, I did say earlier that I would have preferred if the lacing system was deeper, but given how much extra soft, uninterrupted knit there is because of the lacing setup, it does mean that there is plenty of that excellent upper to feel on the ball. On top of that, having the laces shifted to outside in this way does allow for more of the upper to be used for shooting.

Lastly, the anchoring on the soleplate is really well done when it comes to hitting the ball with power. Great stuff.

Grip

The soleplate has a whole is very good. It has great snapback and there is a lot of grip available. It feels aggressive but still reactive enough that in tight spaces to feel pretty agile. I do not feel stuck in the ground at any point as it releases nicely out of the ground. The outsole is one of my favourite speed boot outsoles on the market, and I really enjoy making hard sprints in the Furon V8.

Even on slightly harder surfaces the soleplate has no noticeable stud pressure, which adds to the overall comfort. The flip side of the aggressiveness of the soleplate means that these are not suitable for artificial grass. I personally have no issues, but I do not recommend wearing this soleplate on AG. Go for the AG soleplate for these. As an aside, I also wish that NB would make their hard ground soleplate available outside of Japan as it is very good.

The speed break stud is a little bit gimmicky, however. I do notice the extra stud when making super aggressive cuts, but it feels a bit unnecessary. At the same time, it does help separate the Furon V8 from other speed boots on the market and certainly makes it look more aggressive.

Conclusion

One of the things I have come to realise during the testing of the New Balance Furon V8 Elite is that these have become my favourite knit boot on the market. The boots are very comfortable, with a fantastic fit and still feels very much like a speed boot. It is aggressive, yet still feels like it is tuned to have an exceptional touch on the ball. They are an excellent boot and have quickly moved into my general rotation, even finding a spot on my early Top 5 Boots on the Year list (which go check the pod I do with BootWizard on this). I took me far too long to review New Balance boots and the Furon V8 shows that they are a brand that everyone should pay attention to. An outstanding boot.

What do you think about the New Balance Furon V8 Elite? Please share this with your friends and make sure to follow me on Instagram!

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