The Adidas Spezial was originally released as a handball shoe in the brand's homeland of Germany in 1979, but come the 1980s, the robust kicks had become an integral part of the terrace casuals movement in football and beyond. They fell by the wayside, however, as other styles became more popular.
Gary Aspden, a long-time consultant for Adidas, resurrected the popularity of the Spezial in 2013 with an exhibition at the Hoxton Gallery, which spurred consequent capsule collections comprising footwear and clothing each season, which look back at the archival history of Adidas. For instance, for Spring/Summer 2019 Aspden focused on renowned Adidas collector Robert Brooks, whose personal collection features running trainers such as the Denver and was the focal point for the design of the Silverbirch SPZL.
And now Aspden has unveiled the latest Spezial drop in time for SS20 and it's, well, pretty special. In tune with the line being his love letter to the historical Adidas, he's focused on the brand's involvement in the British Soul scene. With emphasis on the Northern Soul phenomenon of the late 1960s, the early house/jazz fusion of the 1980s and the acid jazz of the 1990s, the collection consists of mod-approved Trefoil socks, bucket hats, boxy rain jackets, tight and long-sleeved, engineered knit polo shirts and the tailored Pleckgate tracksuit, arguably the hero piece.
Aspden has also introduced four pairs of trainers that reflect extremely rare, retro Adidas styles. The Adidas Sydney from the City Runs series has been reimagined as the Ashurst SPZL, while the new Lotherton SPZL takes the Ardwick SPZL silhouette from the very first Spezial collection and readjusts it to create a completely new hybrid that uses the vintage Adidas Florida brown and moss colourway. There's also the Training '76 SPZL, which is inspired by the Japanese version of the Adidas Berlin, and the Zurro SPZL, whose upper pattern is based on the vintage Adidas Azzurro married with the striped midsole of the ultra rare Adidas Montreal '76.
Available from 12 June, this is perhaps the best and most complete Spezial drop to date. Below are our top picks from the collection.
