Nike Football Elite Pack 2016: The Forgotten Silver Collection
- Bootsfinder
- 9 hours ago
- 9 min read
In the summer of 2016, Nike Football had one of the strongest boot line-ups in its history.
The new-generation Mercurial Superfly V, Magista Obra II, Hypervenom Phantom II and Tiempo Legend 6 were all established at the top of their respective categories, while Nike's biggest stars were preparing for another season at the highest level.
Just weeks after the spectacular Spark Brilliance collection created a riot of red, pink, blue and Volt across the pitches of Europe, Nike went in the opposite direction.
Enter the Nike Football Elite Pack.
Released in July 2016 ahead of the 2016/17 season, the collection brought together Nike's four principal football silos in a much more restrained colourway. Rather than the explosive colours of Spark Brilliance, the Elite Pack was built around Pure Platinum silver, black and flashes of Ghost Green and Hyper Turquoise.
It was sophisticated, understated and unmistakably Nike.
And despite being worn by some of the biggest names in world football, it has become one of the lesser-remembered Nike collections of the era.
For collectors today, that is precisely what makes it interesting.
A New Season, A New Nike Elite Pack
The Elite Pack was officially unveiled on 25 July 2016, making it Nike's second major football boot collection of the 2016/17 campaign.
Nike described the collection as a shimmering range designed for the opening phase of the new season, with all four of its major silos receiving matching designs. The boots were scheduled to become available from August, with the collection appearing on-pitch towards the end of the summer.
The timing was significant.
Euro 2016 had just finished, with Portugal crowned champions in France, and clubs were beginning their preparations for the new domestic season. The Olympic football tournament was also taking place in Rio.
Nike therefore needed a collection that could carry its biggest players into the new season.
Rather than designing four completely different boots, Nike created a visual family.
The result was a remarkably cohesive collection:
Pure Platinum uppers. Black Nike Swooshes. Ghost Green accents. Hyper Turquoise details. And some seriously bright soleplates.
It was silver on the surface — but underneath, there was plenty going on.
The Nike Mercurial Elite Pack
Colourway: Pure Platinum / Black / Ghost Green / Hyper Turquoise
The Mercurial was arguably the most striking boot in the Elite Pack.
The Mercurial Superfly V, launched earlier in 2016, represented one of Nike's most advanced speed boots yet. Its Flyknit construction and Dynamic Fit collar were designed to create a close, almost sock-like connection between the foot and boot.
For the Elite Pack, Nike covered that futuristic construction in silver.
The upper transitioned from a lighter platinum shade towards a darker grey at the rear, while a contrasting black Swoosh ran along the side of the boot.
But it was the soleplate that really brought the personality.
The bright Ghost Green outsole provided a dramatic contrast to the otherwise muted upper, with Hyper Turquoise adding another flash of colour.
It was a clever design decision.
From above, the Mercurial looked refined.
From underneath, it looked ready to explode.
The collection also included the lower-cut Mercurial Vapor XI, giving players who preferred a traditional collar the same Elite Pack aesthetic.
Eden Hazard leads the way
One of the first major players spotted wearing the Mercurial Elite Pack was Eden Hazard.
The Chelsea star became the first player reported to train in the new Pure Platinum Mercurial during Chelsea's 2016 pre-season tour in the United States. He subsequently wore them during Chelsea's pre-season meeting with Real Madrid, scoring twice despite Chelsea eventually losing 3–2.
That made Hazard one of the earliest faces of the collection.
And it was a fitting choice.
The Belgian winger had built his reputation around acceleration, agility and close control — exactly the characteristics Nike associated with the Mercurial line.
Original launch price
The elite Superfly V launched at approximately £230–£250, depending on the exact market/source and version. Contemporary reporting placed Nike's top-end Mercurial pricing in the region of £230, while Bootsfinder's own historical archive records approximately £250 for the Superfly V Elite.
The Vapor XI Elite sat below the Superfly V in Nike's hierarchy, with Bootsfinder's historical research putting its launch price at approximately £220.
Nike Hypervenom Phantom II
Colourway: Pure Platinum / Ghost Green / Hyper Turquoise / Black
If the Mercurial was the speed boot, the Hypervenom Phantom II was Nike's weapon for the game's most dangerous attackers.
The second-generation Hypervenom had been created around the idea of creating space and finishing from unpredictable positions. Its soft NikeSkin upper, Flywire construction and aggressive stud configuration made it a very different proposition from the traditional Tiempo.
For the Elite Pack, Nike gave it the same silver treatment as the Mercurial.
But there was something particularly interesting about the Hypervenom.
The boot's soleplate was arguably the most visually dramatic of the entire collection, with bright green and turquoise elements contrasting against the Pure Platinum upper.
Neymar's Hypervenom
And naturally, one player stood above everyone else when it came to the Hypervenom:
Neymar Jr.
By 2016, Neymar had become one of Nike Football's most important athletes and was the face of the Hypervenom silo.
He was initially expected to be one of the headline players for the Elite Pack, although his on-pitch transition was rather more complicated than a straightforward switch.
Neymar eventually debuted the Elite Pack Hypervenom in October 2016, and his boots were anything but ordinary.
His version incorporated modifications based on the boots he had already been wearing, including elements of his customised Hypervenom construction. Footy Headlines noted that his Elite Pack boots retained the yellow and blue colouring associated with his previous Spark Brilliance boots, making Neymar's pair something of a hybrid between the two collections.
That is exactly the sort of detail that makes Neymar's 2016 boots particularly fascinating to collectors.
Nike Magista Elite Pack
Nike Magista Obra II
Colourway: Pure Platinum / Black / Ghost Green / Hyper Turquoise
The Magista Obra II represented Nike's control silo and was arguably the most technologically interesting boot in the collection.
The second-generation Magista had been introduced in 2016 and featured Nike's Flyknit construction, Dynamic Fit collar and a textured upper designed to enhance touch and ball control.
For the Elite Pack, Nike transformed it into a silver-grey masterpiece.
The Pure Platinum upper was complemented by black detailing and the familiar Ghost Green and Hyper Turquoise colour combination.
Unlike the Mercurial, which screamed speed, the Magista had a more technical and sophisticated appearance.
It looked like a piece of modern football equipment rather than simply a brightly coloured football boot.
The Elite Pack also extended beyond the high-cut Obra II, with Nike producing the low-cut Magista Opus in the same colourway.
Mario Götze and the Magista
One of the most notable players associated with the Elite Pack Magista was Mario Götze.
The German midfielder was among the Nike athletes expected to wear the Pure Platinum Magista Obra II at the beginning of the 2016/17 season.
Other major Magista players included Blaise Matuidi and David Luiz, while the low-cut Opus was associated with players including Sergio Busquets and Andrés Iniesta.
And that tells you something important about the Elite Pack.
This wasn't simply a collection of boots given to whichever Nike players happened to be available.
Nike was carefully positioning the collection around some of the most recognisable players in world football.
Original launch price
Contemporary reporting placed the Magista Opus in this collection at approximately £230, while the elite Magista Obra occupied Nike's top-end pricing tier alongside the Superfly and Hypervenom.
Nike Tiempo Legend 6
Colourway: Pure Platinum / Black / Hyper Turquoise
The final member of the collection was also the most traditional.
The Nike Tiempo Legend 6 was Nike's leather football boot — and in 2016 it represented the connection between modern boot technology and the classic football boot.
The Elite Pack version was noticeably more restrained than the other three.
While the Hypervenom, Magista and Mercurial incorporated Ghost Green, the Tiempo used only Pure Platinum, Black and Hyper Turquoise.
The result was perhaps the classiest boot of the four.
Underneath that understated exterior was Nike's advanced construction for the Tiempo Legend 6, including its Xray skeleton system, which allowed Nike to reduce traditional stitching across the forefoot while maintaining structure and stability.
And, importantly for traditionalists, the upper remained made from premium Kangaroo leather.
At the time, the Elite Pack Tiempo Legend 6 was priced at around $210 / €210 / £165, making it a premium football boot even by 2016 standards.
The defenders' choice
The Tiempo was naturally associated with some of Nike's biggest defenders.
Gerard Piqué and Jérôme Boateng were among the headline players connected with the Pure Platinum Tiempo, while Sergio Ramos was another major Nike Tiempo athlete around the launch of the collection.
It was an appropriate boot for the era.
The modern game was becoming faster and more technical, but there was still something special about pulling on a soft leather Tiempo.
The Nike Elite Eleven
One of the most interesting aspects of the 2016 Elite Pack was the idea that it was reserved for a select group of Nike's most important footballers.
Contemporary reports suggested that only around 11 Nike athletes would wear the new Elite Pack on-pitch, creating what became known as Nike's "Elite Squad".
The concept made perfect marketing sense.
Instead of flooding the pitch with the new collection, Nike made the boots feel exclusive.
The Elite Pack became something you had to be looking for.
And that created some fantastic boot-spotting moments during the opening months of the 2016/17 season.
Among the biggest names connected with the collection were:
Eden Hazard — Mercurial
Neymar Jr. — Hypervenom
Mario Götze — Magista
Blaise Matuidi — Magista
David Luiz — Magista
Sergio Ramos — Tiempo
Gerard Piqué — Tiempo
Jérôme Boateng — Tiempo
Andrés Iniesta — Magista Opus
Sergio Busquets — Magista Opus
And then there was one rather significant name who made things particularly interesting...
Cristiano Ronaldo.
What About Cristiano Ronaldo?
Ronaldo was Nike's biggest Mercurial athlete, so naturally there was enormous interest in whether CR7 would join the Elite Squad.
And, for a period, he did.
Ronaldo was still wearing the Elite Pack Mercurial as late as the end of September 2016.
Footy Headlines subsequently reported that he became the exception when the rest of Nike's Elite Squad moved towards the next collection, with Ronaldo eventually switching to a modified version of the forthcoming Floodlight Pack.
This makes the Elite Pack particularly interesting from a Ronaldo-boot-collecting perspective.
It sits right in the middle of a fascinating period of his career — between the Euro 2016-winning Portugal side and the arrival of the next generation of CR7 signature Mercurial boots.
Why Did Nike Make the Elite Pack?
The name gives away much of the thinking.
Nike wasn't simply releasing another colourway.
The Elite Pack was about status.
Silver has always had an association with premium products, technology and performance. By combining Pure Platinum with flashes of high-visibility green and turquoise, Nike managed to make the boots look both sophisticated and aggressive.
There was also a clever contrast with the Spark Brilliance pack.
Spark Brilliance
Bold.Colourful.Explosive.Euro 2016.
Elite Pack
Silver.Technical.Premium.2016/17 season.
The two collections demonstrate how differently Nike could approach the same four football boot silos within a matter of months.
Why Collectors Should Remember the 2016 Elite Pack
It is easy to overlook the Elite Pack.
The Spark Brilliance collection arrived with the excitement of Euro 2016.
The Floodlight Pack followed later in the year with its dramatic designs.
The Dark Lightning collection closed out 2016 in classic Nike fashion with predominantly black boots and flashes of colour.
The Elite Pack therefore sits somewhat quietly between the major headline releases.
But look closer and it tells an important story.
It captures Nike at a fascinating point in football boot history.
The Mercurial Superfly V was still a relatively new generation of speed boot.
The Magista Obra II represented the height of Nike's Flyknit control technology.
The Hypervenom Phantom II was still one of the most recognisable attacking boots in the world.
And the Tiempo Legend 6 demonstrated that traditional leather still had a place alongside all that innovation.
Put all four together in Pure Platinum and you get a snapshot of Nike Football in 2016.
Nike Elite Pack 2016: The Bootsfinder Verdict
The Nike Football Elite Pack may not have the same instant recognition as Spark Brilliance, but for anyone interested in the history of Nike football boots, it deserves far more attention.
It brought together four of Nike's most technologically advanced boots of the era:
Mercurial Superfly V — speed.
Hypervenom Phantom II — attack.
Magista Obra II — control.
Tiempo Legend 6 — touch and tradition.
And it put some of the biggest footballers on the planet into the same visual family.
From Hazard and Ronaldo flying down the wing in Mercurials, to Neymar creating something from nothing in the Hypervenom, Götze and Iniesta controlling midfield in the Magista and Ramos, Piqué and Boateng anchoring the defence in Tiempo Legends, the Elite Pack was effectively a who's-who of Nike's 2016 footballing world.
It may have been one of Nike's quieter releases.
But sometimes the quieter boots become the most interesting ones to rediscover.
And almost ten years on, the 2016 Nike Elite Pack is a perfect example.
Four silos. One collection. Some of the biggest names in football. And one seriously underrated chapter in Nike boot history.
Words: Bootsfinder | Nike Football Boot Archive
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