Summary
- North Korean soccer players wear expensive cleats from Western brands like Nike, Adidas, and Puma despite efforts to promote domestic equipment
- The national teams have been seen sporting premium boots from American and German companies, even displaying logos of Hollywood blockbusters banned in North Korea
- This contrasts with the state’s crackdown on bourgeois culture and promotion of domestically made boots
- The DPRK men’s national team and U-17 and U-20 women’s squads have all been seen wearing Western brand cleats recently