Nike Mercurial Victory III IC Review
The Nike Mercurial Victory III is easily one of the most popular soccer shoes on the market, and while they may not offer a premium feel, what they do offer is alright for what you pay. The shoe appears to have a similar streamlined shape and appearance to that of its’ big brother, the Vapor VIII, but when you put it on your foot, it’s an entirely different feel. For those of you that have asked me whether or not this feels like the Vapor, the answer is no, not even close.
When I put this boot on my foot, I immediately noticed the strangely high arches that the shoe has, which isn’t a bad thing, but it felt very weird to have that in a soccer shoe. I also noticed almost immediately that the boot feels a little on the chunky side when they’re on your feet. They aren’t bulky shoes by any means, but the somewhat sloppy fit makes for a very undesirable feel. The reason for this is because Nike have made a shoe that fits very wide, all the way through, allowing it to fit nearly any foot type. This means that this shoe will fit you, it just may not fit you well. The toes box is very wide and the mid foot area is fairly wide as well. That being said, this is still a fairly comfortable shoe. The padding that the sole of the shoes provide is not the best, but it is enough to play comfortably.
The upper of this shoe is soft, but also feels a little on the cheap side. It also features the new suede like finish of the Vapor, but a much finer version, almost to the point where I would call it unnoticeable. The Victory upper is a much more layered material, that is much thicker, where as the Teijin Microfiber on the Vapor is a very thin, single layered material. The synthetic upper is soft, making for minimal break-in time, and it also doesn’t stretch much at all, which is a plus, but it just doesn’t have that super tight fit that most that you would want from synthetic. I wore my usual size 9US for review and they fit well in the length. If you’re looking to order a pair of these boots, I would recommend ordering your regular size.
Weight
Given that the Mercurial line is all about being lightweight, you would expect the Victory III, even as the lowest model in the line, to have somewhat of a lightweight quality to it, and it does. The Victory weighs in at 8.8oz, which for an indoor shoe, is just below average weight. While I do realize that the higher end, firm ground models are much lighter, for what the indoor Victory has on offer, the weight is fairly impressive. This isn’t a shoe that is going to blow you away with how light it is, but it certainly is not going to weigh you down either.
Traction
The Victory III indoor uses an all new sole, which is great. The new sole is made from a fairly nice quality gum rubber that provides a solid amount of grip on all indoor playing surfaces. The sole is much improved from past models of the Victory indoor, although if you do plan on using these more as a street soccer shoe, I am not sure that the softer gum rubber will hold up as well.
Touch
This is probably the biggest let down in my opinion. The touch on this shoe isn’t bad, but I was hoping for a more barefoot feel, that I just didn’t get from the Victory. The upper is the exact same as the outdoor Mercurial Victory, the lowest shoe in the Mercurial line, and is made of several layers of what appears to be a predominantly mesh upper with the standard Mercurial finish on the outside. Like I said earlier, it looks like the Vapor, but it doesn’t feel like the Vapor. The upper to me felt a little on the cheap side and just didn’t provide the close touch that I always look for in a synthetic shoe. To me, the upper felt a little bulky, and although this may be completely related to the fit and not the upper itself, it does have a major effect on the entire boot. Overall the touch isn’t bad, it just isn’t that premium synthetic that you might be used to from the high end Mercurials.
Shooting
Since this is a Victory, the tongue does have a little bit of padding, but not much. Shooting with this boot does have a little bit of a thinner feel, which is good if that is what you’re looking for. Like I usually point out, shooting is not a big part of indoor soccer, so that really shouldn’t be one of your main concerns when looking for an indoor boot.
Durability
There really isn’t much that could go wrong with the Victory III indoor. They no longer have that split sole design, so the upper is not going to scrape against the ground at all. Given that you use them on indoor surfaces, like a gym floor, the Victory III should last a long time. You could use these for street soccer, but as I mentioned earlier, I am not confident that the soft gum rubber sole will hold up too well.
The Verdict
The Victory III indoor is not a bad shoe by any means, but I just feel that you have better options in the same price range. I realize that the Victory is a very popular model, and having tested the outdoor version as well, I just don’t think that the upper itself translates well on to an indoor shoe. For whatever reason, the shape is a little off and it gives the boot somewhat of a sloppy feel. As far as I am concerned the Victory III isn’t bad, it’s just okay.
| Comfort/Fit | 7 out of 10 |
| Weight | 8 out of 10 |
| Traction | 8 out of 10 |
| Touch | 6 out of 10 |
| Shooting | 7 out of 10 |
| Durability | 8 out of 10 |
| FINAL SCORE | 44 out of 60 or 73% |
