Recently, FILA Korea teamed up with Subway to create a line of apparel, which included shirts, hats, and yes, shoes as well. Here at KORdotSIN, we love fashion and everything K-Style, so this seemed like a no-brainer!

Today, we present 5 of Korea's trendiest sneaker releases!

Let's get it!

1. Subway X FILA Korea Collab

Starting off with the aforementioned Subway collaboration, the line featured 3 shoes - the Drifter (a pair of slip-on slides), the Jagato (a structured runner-type shoe with a funky FILA logo outsole) and the Classic Border OG Shoes (a more traditional looking sneaker with FILA's iconic side motif). In classic hyped-collab fashion, the shoes sold out in Korea, with people clamouring for them on the secondary market. 

The Drifter, Classic Border OG, Jagato Subway collab shoes (left to right)

When it comes to Korea's trendiest sneakers at the moment, these are pretty high on the list!

2. Nike Korea Football Collection

(Air Force 1, Air Presto & Air Max 95)

Two months ago, Nike announced the newly designed jerseys for the South Korean National Football Team to mixed fanfare. With it came a lineup of lifestyle apparel and shoes that followed the designs of the new jerseys.

Air Force 1 "South Korea" - A clean design featuring the Korean flag on the heel, tiger stripes featured on the Away kit and two toned laces and outsole make for a unique take on a classic silhouette. 

Air Max 95 Country Pack 'Korea' - A more forward-looking design matches the refined structure of the Air Max 95. An all-over pattern inspired by the pre-match uniforms dominate the shoe, leaving an all-white outsole that ties everything together.

Nike Air Presto 'South Korea' - Finally, we have the Air Presto, which combines tiger stripes (Korea's national animal) with a two-toned blue and red cage, paying homage to the Taegukgi and South Korean national flag, which also features on the heel of the shoe. 

3. Nike Air Max 97 'Neon Seoul'

In 2018, Nike ran a sneaker designing contest called 'On Air', which seeked designs from around the world to represent various cities, with one of them being Seoul.

The eventual winner, Gwang Shin, took inspiration from the city's nightlife and neon signs while designing the sneaker. The shoe was released on Air Max Day the very next year, along with the 5 other winners from the different cities, thus forming the 'On Air' collection.

They look kinda like swirls of toothpaste, but much fancier.

4. Nike Air Jordan 3 "Korea"

Easily the most hyped released of the list, the Air Jordan 3 "Korea" was a mash-up of the Korean flag colours and the vaunted 'White Cement' colorway, and was released exclusively in the Jordan store in Hongdae. The shoe now resells for thousands of dollars on the secondary market.

The sneaker was made to commemorate the year 1988, which was the year Michael Jordan won his back-to-back Dunk Contests with the fabled Free Throw Line Dunk, as well as the year that the Summer Olympics that took place in Seoul. 

The shoes featured Korean writing on the tongue, which says 'Seoul'. As a side note, I was in Hongdae on the night before the release day, but laughed off the crazy line of people waiting in the cold. I highly regret that decision now.

5. G-Dragon PEACEMINUSONE x Nike Air Force 1 "Para-Noise"

In a list of Korea's Trendiest Sneakers, I could not end it without mentioning the most talked-about sneaker in recent memory. Whereas the previously mentioned Air Jordan 3 was eagerly anticipated by sneakerheads, the Air Force 1 "Para-Noise" were talked about by almost everyone that I know.

The shoes featured a coat of black paint, which would peel away to show the colorful design underneath. Many speculated that the design was a tribute to former BIGBANG member, and close friend Seungri, but it is left unconfirmed.

The shoes came in 3 variations, the General Release with the white swoosh (left), the Korea-exclusive with the red swoosh (right) and a Friends and Family edition (not pictured) with a yellow swoosh.

Stay tuned for part two, where we go through even more trendy Korea-related sneakers and colorways!

Curious about what brands K-Pop idols like to wear when they aren't on stage? Click here to find out!