The story of the shoes that went from being banned from competition to becoming the global brand of living legend Michael Jordan

There is no need to discuss too much about Michael Jordan’s influence on basketball in particular and world popular culture in general. All mementos related to him have unbelievable value…

Until today, the Jordan shoe line has become a famous global brand. With a total of 37 lines and thousands of different color combinations, Jordan shoes have brought in billions of dollars in revenue, becoming a fashion icon not only for the basketball world, but also for shoe enthusiasts around the world.

However, this legendary shoe line was almost not allowed to appear in the NBA. It’s a long story about the Air Jordan 1 shoe, which was banned by the NBA, and Nike’s extraordinary campaign to allow the shoe to appear on Michael Jordan’s feet in 1985.

Why was the Air Jordan 1 banned in the NBA?
On October 18, 1984, Michael Jordan appeared in a friendly match against the New York Knicks, with a unique black and red shoe on his foot. Although this is a common thing today, at that time, this color scheme was banned by the NBA from being used in matches.

NBA regulations at the time required players to have shoes that matched the color of other teammates on the court, as well as be at least 51% white. The black and red color scheme at that time was considered the “devil’s color”, far different from the previously established regulations.

Nike accepted the NBA’s regulations and then they tried to remove the black part to release the red and white colorway that became the first Air Jordan 1. This is also the starting point of the birth of legendary shoes, a must-have in every wardrobe of those who are passionate about sports fashion around the world.

However, there is another truth hidden behind that. Air Jordan 1 is not a banned shoe, but it belongs to a similar design called Nike Air Ship, the predecessor of Air Jordan 1. This is also an extremely expensive shoe, attracting attention. the heart of many collectors around the world.

In the following months, Nike did not forget to take advantage of the NBA ban to promote Air Jordan 1 shoes with its black and red “Banned” color scheme. At the Slam Dunk Contest in 1985, Michael Jordan wore this color scheme to compete and since then, a billion-dollar brand was officially born.

Later, the regulation that 51% white must be on shoes was gradually relaxed in the 2000s. Since 2018, all color restrictions on soccer shoes have been completely eliminated, bringing new Extremely beautiful color combination for all sports shoes around the world.