Palermo personified: Puma releases iconic sneaker in fresh colourways

The word “Palermo” conjures up thoughts of the living la dolce vita, as one imagines exploring the storied streets of Sicily's capital city.

Palermo is famed for its charming markets, the glorious architecture of its historic buildings — and, if you're a fashionista or football enthusiast, for being the namesake of one of the most iconic sneaker designs in Puma's archives.

The Puma Palermo first debuted about 40 years ago, when it was created as part of a special series of sneakers paying homage to some of Europe's most famous cities, including London, Oslo and more.

It was soon adopted by football fans, becoming a wardrobe staple of the terrace crowd in 1980s soccer stadiums.

Needless to say, there's was a great sense of nostalgia when Puma announced it was reviving this legendary low-top silhouette last year.

The reimagined Palermo features all the hallmarks of the original — its signature tag at the upper, a T-toe construction and a classic terrace gum sole — but it's been updated with contemporary colour combinations. These include Special Pink Delight-Puma Green, Vine-Clementine, White Vapor-Grey Gum and Black Feather-Grey Gum.

This year, the Palermo story continues as the brand releases two soft new colour schemes: Grape Mist-Peach Fizz and Alpine Snow-Puma White.

And, to mark the occasion, a new chapter has been added to its “Forever. Palermo.” campaign.

The previous edition, led by footballer Jack Grealish and singer-songwriter Dua Lipa, showed how different personalities made the sneaker their own. 

This time, the campaign aims to personify Palermo itself, capturing the vibrancy that makes the capital of the Italian isle of Sicily — and its namesake sneaker — one of a kind.

Take a look:

The Puma Palermo, R1,799, is available from Puma.com, Puma retail stores, Archive, Al Capone, Sportscene, Shesha and Superbalist.

This article was sponsored by Puma.