Fenty x PUMA Returns With Remake of the Avanti Football-Inspired Sneaker

Sports brand PUMA and global icon Rihanna have jointly unveiled their newest product line. Rihanna returns to the brand as Creative Director of FENTY x PUMA, with a multi-year partnership and multiple product launches planned. The return of FENTY x PUMA combines PUMA’s rich history and heritage in sport with Rihanna’s status as a cultural, musical, and fashion icon. The FENTY x PUMA Avanti, the first footwear franchise of the partnership, is an unorthodox combination of two PUMA icons, combining the premium leather design of the King football boot with the outsole of the Easy Rider heritage running shoe.

Beginning in 2015 with the iconic Creeper, Rihanna and PUMA have a history of releasing innovative fashion interpretations of sport-inspired designs. From 2015 to 2018, Rihanna and PUMA released numerous footwear and apparel collections, including the FENTY x PUMA trainer and the FENTY x PUMA fur slide. FENTY x PUMA’s four fashion shows in New York and Paris contributed to PUMA’s brand influence and relevance over the past decade.

This footwear franchise was founded on Rihanna’s passion for football and the sport’s tremendous influence off the field. Rihanna’s interpretation of this iconic style ushers in a new era of sport-inspired collaborations with PUMA.

In addition, it was essential to both Rihanna and PUMA that this launch be available to the entire family, with a collection that will look just as cool on children as on adults. The Avanti, previously worn by luminaries and now remixed by Rihanna herself, is also available as a unisex shoe for adults and children.

In 1968, the original PUMA king football boot was created, worn by icons like Eusebio, Pelé and Maradona. In 1978, the PUMA miele inaugurated a new franchise of jogging shoes that would eventually become the PUMA Easy Rider. In 1998, Jil Sander and PUMA introduced the Jil Sander King, the first fashion collaboration to combine these two designs. This shoe served as the design inspiration for PUMA’s 2001 introduction of the Avanti. Now in 2023, Rihanna has added her personal design language and creative elements, from the details of the leather to the gum of the outsole, placing her very own spin on this classic PUMA style.

Rihanna explained, “I wanted to bring something iconic from the archives to the street, and the late great Pelé made the Avanti shoe so iconic.”

PUMA’s Chief Product Officer, Maria Valdes, described the beginning of the partnership as “so exciting.” “We spent time together sifting through the PUMA archive to find the perfect product for Rihanna. The Avanti is a PUMA classic with a distinctive and iconic terrace perspective. I’m ecstatic to see this endeavor come to fruition and even more eager to see what the future holds for us in the coming years.”

The FENTY x PUMA Avanti is a fashion-forward take on the football trend, featuring buttery-soft vintage leather, a fold-over tongue with a debossed and printed gold-foil FENTY and PUMA CAT logo, and a gold-foil FENTY and PUMA CAT logo. The Avanti’s gum outsole and leather footbed are a tribute to PUMA’s rich history and heritage in the sport of football. A chrome execution with laser-etched logos and leather chrome detailing complements the black-and-white version.

As Creative Director, Rihanna’s first FENTY x PUMA campaign – photographed by Dennis Leupold with a set design inspired by the pentagon shape and stitching on a football – features Rihanna, A$AP Nast, Pure, Felix Mallard, and two small children.

The FENTY x PUMA Avanti is available at puma.com and select retailers worldwide.

The collection will be available at PUMA Shangri-La and PUMA.com on September 15 at 10 p.m.

The second Avanti release will occur this autumn. More information is forthcoming.