Which Brazilian footballer was the first to have a signature Nike Mercurial boot? Ronaldo. Brazilian striker Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima was the player associated with the first Nike Mercurial, introduced for the 1998 FIFA World Cup.
Nike designed the lightweight boot with speed in mind, matching Ronaldo’s explosive reputation and attacking style. He wore the blue, yellow and chrome Mercurial SG during the tournament in France, giving the new line a highly visible debut. The boot is often called the “R9” Mercurial because Ronaldo wore shirt number 9 and became inseparable from the model.
The answer refers to Ronaldo Nazário, not Cristiano Ronaldo, whose own long-running Mercurial signature series came much later. Ronaldinho and Neymar also became major Nike football ambassadors, but neither was the original Mercurial figure. Pelé, meanwhile, was associated with an earlier generation of football footwear and was not the first Mercurial signature athlete.
Ronaldo’s influence continued through anniversary editions and later designs inspired by his 1998 boot.