The adidas Ace16+ PureControl was launched this Monday and got a massive response from anyone who saw the brand new laceless design. However, as some of you quite rightly pointed out, the new innovation from adidas isn’t the first time we see a boot made without laces, because Lotto did it first.

The Lotto Zhero Gravity first saw the light of day in early 2006, so finding a pair of them took quite a bit of digging in our extensive boot archive. Eventually JayMike managed to find one of the second generation versions of them, so we could share some images of them for your viewing pleasure.

Now it is correct that Lotto were the ones to first come up with the Laceless football boot concept, however with that being said, if we look at the two boots, apart from the fact that they are both laceless that’s about where the similarities end. They are totally different and achieve their laceless design in very different ways too.

If you want to get your hands on the new adidas Ace16+ PureControl, then you can find it here.

It is very funny to you hear people talking about the Lotto Zhero Gravity, because everyone has entirely polar opinions about them. Some say they work absolutely sensationally and fit them like a glove, while others said it took 20 minutes to get them on and after that all they did was get blisters. The fit they had was veeery delicate and if they fit, they were brilliant and if not, well then you were in trouble.

I’m not saying that adidas have copied Lotto, but I’d be surprised if this wasn’t something they had also picked up on in the Ace16+ PureControl design team. This might be why so much focus is on the adidas Laceless boots fit, which my initial reaction, and others who have tried it too for that matter, find far more accommodating. This really is the key difference for me, because I think a lot more people will have a good experience with the adidas Ace16+ PureControl.

It’s nostalgia vs. the future and I wouldn’t blame you for getting caught up in your love for the Lotto Zhero Gravity, because although it fit me awfully, some of my colleagues hold it in very high regards. Do you share their love for ‘em or are you looking more forward to trying on the new laceless boot from adidas? Let us know below.