Half the reason the adidas Handball Spezial blew up is color. The Samba mostly lives in black and white; the Spezial shows up in browns, deep navies, wine reds, greens and pinks that make it feel like a different shoe in every colorway. Here's our guide to the Spezial colors in the collection, what each one does best, and which to buy first.
Black and neutrals: the daily drivers
If this is your first Spezial, start here. Black cow suede with white leather 3-Stripes and a gum sole goes with everything you already own, and the suede keeps it from reading as a plain black sneaker.
If you want black without the white striping, the Wonder Quartz tones the contrast down. On the women's side the dark alumina and the off white and bronze are the neutral workhorses, warmer than grey, easier than white.
Navy and blue: the archetype
If you asked someone to draw a Handball Spezial from memory, they'd draw a blue one. It's the colorway that ties the shoe back to its 1979 handball-court origins. The Night Indigo is the current best version of it, deep indigo suede, cream leather stripes, and a darker gum sole that keeps the whole palette grounded.
For the summer-weight take, the light blue and gum is the same idea turned up in brightness, and the Colombia blue leans sportier.
Reds and maroons: the rich tones
This is Spezial territory the Samba can't touch. Deep, suede-rich color that photographs beautifully and ages even better. Scarlet red is the loud one and maroon is the wearable one, maroon behaves almost like a neutral once it's on foot, in the same way a deep burgundy does.
Here's the red on video, so you can see how the suede actually reads in the light:
@westcoastdeals, a closer look at the red adidas Handball Spezial. Watch on TikTok
Want something further out? The women's bright red and clear pink leans fully into fun, a statement pair that works because the silhouette underneath stays so clean.
Where's the brown Spezial?
Fair question, because brown is the colorway search spikes on every autumn, and chocolate suede over a gum sole is the warmest version of the terrace look. Straight answer: the brown suede sneaker moves between drops, so what we have in brown right now is the Handball Spezial Loafer, the same suede and the same gum sole, built as a slip-on rather than a laced shoe.
It's a different silhouette, not a different shoe, and if brown suede is what you're after it scratches exactly that itch:
Our Spezial Loafer review covers how it fits versus the laced pair. For the laced brown, keep an eye on the collection, it comes back around.
The football collabs
adidas keeps using the Spezial as a canvas for national-team makeups, and they're some of the most interesting color stories in the line: the Spain in red, navy and gold, the Mexico in white and aurora ivy, and the Argentina in black and white. The Liberty London floral is the same idea from a different direction, print instead of flag.
These run in small numbers and rarely come back, which is most of their appeal.
Which colorway should you buy first?
Black if it's your only pair. Navy or indigo if you want the classic that people who know the shoe will clock. Maroon or red if you already own the safe one and want the Spezial to actually do something in an outfit.
Whichever direction you go, check fit before ordering. The Spezial is true to size for standard-width feet, and half a size up if your foot is wide or you wear a medium-to-thick sock, it's the roomiest of the classic terrace models, and our sizing guide covers it. For deeper dives, we've got a full men's Spezial buying guide and women's Spezial guide, and if you're a colorway person generally, the Samba colorways guide is the companion read.
Every colorway, verified
Popular colorways attract fakes first. Every Spezial we sell is authenticated in-house at our Portland, Oregon warehouse, Verified & Shipped. Browse the full adidas Handball Spezial collection to see every color in one place.
Anthony from West Coast Deals