US prodigy Cavan Sullivan becomes first to wear custom 3D-printed Adidas boots, honours Bangladeshi roots

Cavan Sullivan. Photo: Collected Sixteen-year-old US football prodigy Cavan Sullivan became the first player to wear Adidas' new custom 3D-printed boots in a competitive match on 23 July, with the Bangladesh flag among the personalised details representing his family heritage.

The bespoke boots, custom-made using Adidas' 3D-printing technology to match Sullivan's feet, feature the flags of Bangladesh, Germany and the United States, reflecting his multicultural background. They are the first of their kind to be worn in a competitive match.

Sullivan's Bangladeshi roots come through his maternal grandmother, Sultana Alam, who was born and raised in Dhaka before moving to the US to pursue a PhD at the University of Pennsylvania. She later worked for the United Nations.