The convention hall Yash Bhoomi in New Delhi was abuzz with excitement on 21st June 2026. The reason behind it was that one of the promising artists from the genre of Punjabi music, Karan Aujla, was going to perform at the convention hall on the very same day, and standing amidst this crowd was none other than Virat Kohli, who has dominated the cricketing arena for more than two decades now. However, this night belonged to something else. With the launch of ONE8, the Indian sportswear industry will never be the same again.
ONE8 is the performance-driven brand for the sportsman Virat Kohli, which includes cricket spikes and lifestyle and training footwear, along with sports apparel designed and manufactured in India.
However, this venture is by no means your usual collaboration between an athlete and a brand. Kohli, who co-founded the Indian sportswear brand Agilitas Sports, had complete creative control to design his own cricket shoe from the ground up as per his exact specifications. Until now, Indian players have been playing the part of brand ambassadors for international brands. But Kohli has done a complete turnaround.
Put yourself in the following shoes: LeBron James has his own Nike lineup, and Rafael Nadal has his signature Nike products. The personalized shoes are seen as the legacy of any great sportsman. Now Kohli’s childhood dream has definitely crossed over into reality.
Undoubtedly, the most impressive part of the history of ONE8 has to do with its development. Kohli's work ethic and passion for perfection were translated into the design procedure. According to reports, the cricketing legend turned down the first 17 designs that were offered by the design team.
While most athletes would have chosen the third iteration and stopped there, Kohli considered every unsuccessful design as if it were an unsuccessful innings in a major Test game. The design team kept going through one revision round after another, and each time, they faced the same answer—not good enough.
It had something to do with designing a shoe that would perfectly suit the challenges of playing professional cricket—explosive speed, abrupt turns, tremendous impacts, and long hours on the ground.
When the design team managed to succeed with the 18th attempt, it was quite symbolic for Kohli to name the shoes "ONE8." Not only because this number has always been Kohli's lucky number but also because it was the year of the 18th edition of the IPL, in which Virat Kohli won the IPL championship with Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
Photo: @one8world/X
It is not only about having a fancy and renowned shoe. The ONE8 is loaded with advanced technologies, which have been incorporated to maximize the effectiveness and safety of the shoe. It has a custom-fitted light weight spike plate to provide a quick start, swift change of direction, and ultimate traction on turf and outfield respectively.
Moreover, the shoe has got an energy return midsole that can help absorb the impact of high-velocity bowling and running across the pitch.
The shoe is designed, keeping the requirements of an international-level player in mind. The player has got experience playing cricket in various countries, including Chennai (India), London, and Perth.
This shoe was launched at an event where Kohli unveiled the shoe, which is named “Seam XVIII Signature Test Red." The shoe comes with a price tag that shocks any cricket lover: ₹9,230. This is no mere marketing gimmick; this amount is exact—9,230 being the total number of runs scored by Kohli in Test cricket prior to 2025.
His career stats have been given a price tag by the brand so that with every glance at the tag, it reminds him of his career stats in tests. The combination of deep red color and hand-stitching of seams is done in order to reflect the traditional design of a red Test ball with hand-stitching and, hence, the brand Seam. XVIII represents nothing but the number 18 in Roman numerals and the number used by him all along in his Test career.
The intended price point was ₹10,000, which was indeed a landmark figure for which he could never make it. With his host Danish Sait teasingly asking if he would play Tests again just to score more runs to meet the price tag requirements. It did not leave any other option for him but to play tests again in the future.
Photo: @one8world
The ONE8 is no ordinary collectors’ shoe. The cricket spikes are available for ₹13,999, while the lifestyle Seam XVIII version is for ₹6,999, thus slotting ONE8 into the premium category among other brand names of athletes worldwide.
This price strategy has been consciously chosen. ONE8 is not out to compete on price with any other brands; instead, it competes on identity, innovation, and legacy.
Kohli made his appearance at the launch of ONE8 in New Delhi along with Karan Aujla, who enchanted everyone present there with his hit song "Winning Speech." Kohli described that he loved listening to this song before important matches. Moreover, he got emotional during the description of the loss of his father at a very young age and what followed after that.
It was not just a product launch; it was more of an ode to life.
With the launch of ONE8, Kohli is no longer merely attaching his name to sportswear — he is attempting to build India's first truly global high-performance sports brand.
A cricketer lending his face to a product earns a fee. A cricketer building and owning a brand earns a share of every pair sold for years. This shift from ambassador to owner is significant. It signals that Indian athletes are ready to sit at the same table as Nike, Adidas, and Puma — not just wear their jerseys.
