adidas X Speedportal Messi "Balón Te Adoro"

The Adidas X Speedportal Messi "Balón Te Adoro" ("Ball, I Love You") is Lionel Messi's first signature colorway on the all-new X Speedportal platform, Adidas's redesigned speed-silo boot that replaced the X Speedflow generation in 2022. Released in September 2022, in the White/Core Black/Solar Red colorway, it landed just weeks ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, a tournament many anticipated (correctly, as it turned out) could be Messi's last, and one he would go on to win with Argentina. The boot continues the word-collage storytelling approach introduced with "Mi Historia," but shifts its biographical focus specifically to Newell's Old Boys, the boyhood club in Rosario where Messi first fell in love with football.

• First reported by Footy Headlines in July 2022.
• Officially released on September 6–7, 2022 (SoccerBible/Soccer Cleats 101 coverage dated September 6, with Soccer Cleats 101 listing September 7 for retail availability).
• Worn by Messi through the following weeks in club and international fixtures for PSG and Argentina during September–October 2022, in the run-up to the World Cup, which began November 20, 2022 (by which point Adidas had shifted focus to the follow-up "Leyenda" World Cup colorway, unveiled in November 2022).

Built on the new X Speedportal chassis, the boot uses a "Speedskin" upper (a thin, tactile synthetic layer bonded over an Engineered Primeknit base) designed to keep the boot extremely lightweight (reported around 189g) while preserving ball-touch feel. It features a Carbon Fiber Speedframe plate running through the forefoot for efficient, lightweight power transmission, an Engineered Agility Cage overlay for lateral support during explosive movements, a reworked stud configuration with two extra forefoot studs to aid straight-line acceleration, an anti-slip silicone heel print, and a "High Speed Stability System" including a carbon heel lock and molded stability fins. It was released with a traditional lace closure (the ".1" build), again reflecting Messi's preference, alongside a laceless "Speedportal+" tier sold to the broader market without his signature involvement in that specific build choice.

The base colorway is white with Core Black Three Stripes branding and Solar Red accents through the soleplate and graphic detailing. As with "Mi Historia," the upper is covered in Spanish-language phrases and words wrapping from heel to toe, reportedly including terms such as "Compañero" (Companion/Teammate), "Siempre Juntos" (Always Together), and "Imparables" (Unstoppable), words chosen to evoke both Messi's personality/playing style and his enduring bond with the game and his early club. Messi's personal logo is placed discreetly on the insole rather than prominently on the exterior, while the Three Stripes branding sits on the forefoot.

"Balón Te Adoro" translates to "Ball, I Love You," a phrase used to express Messi's lifelong, almost childlike devotion to the sport and to the ball itself, continuing the introspective, narrative-driven marketing language Adidas established with "Mi Historia" the same year. Coverage tied the design's Spanish-language callouts and warm, relational vocabulary ("Companion," "Always Together") to Newell's Old Boys, the Rosario club where a six-year-old Messi began playing before his family relocated to Barcelona for his growth-hormone treatment and youth academy trial in 2000–01; several sources describe the boot as honoring this formative, pre-Barcelona chapter of his footballing life. The release also carried extra emotional weight because it arrived directly ahead of the 2022 World Cup, which Messi had signaled might be his last as a player, adding a valedictory undertone to a boot themed around love for the game itself, shortly before Adidas released the follow-up "Leyenda" colorway specifically for the World Cup.

The boots were part of Messi's active rotation for Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1 and the UEFA Champions League group stage during September and October 2022, and for the Argentina national team in pre-World Cup friendlies during the September/October international windows, as he built form heading into what would become a triumphant World Cup campaign in Qatar. Specific individual goals scored while wearing this exact colorway were not confirmed with certainty across the sources reviewed for this file, though the period overlaps with Messi's continued strong PSG form (he was among the club's top scorers and creators that autumn) as Argentina's preparations for the World Cup intensified.

"Balón Te Adoro" is the quiet one of Messi's 2022 pair: his first colorway on the new X Speedportal chassis, released weeks before the Qatar World Cup and themed around his boyhood love of the ball and Newell's Old Boys. It has since been completely overshadowed by the golden "Leyenda" that followed, which is exactly why it's interesting: same platform, same word-collage storytelling, standard $250 retail release, and far saner secondary prices. Reviewers found the Speedportal itself a slight step sideways from the Speedflow (comfortable once broken in, but roomier and less snappy), so this is more of a fan and completionist pick than a peak performer or blue-chip collectible.