Antonio Zea trotted across the Adidas Village pavers on Wednesday, tugging at his jersey, and headed for the company's artificial turf field in North Portland.

The soccer chief at

had just left a meeting and was joining co-workers in the regular lunchtime Wednesday game on the village field. As pickup games go, it's high-quality play; one of the walk-ons used to compete for the Portland Timbers.

And Zea used to be a defender for Rutgers University. And he used to build shoes in Asia. And the New Jersey native once wrote a college paper about why soccer is not as popular in America as it is in most of the world. And he wears a size 9 shoe.

Put that all together and you have a soccer evangelist, immersed in the footwear industry, whose ideal foot size allows him to wear the prototype shoes for the latest soccer boots Adidas Group churns out of its Herzogenaurach, Germany, headquarters.

The Zea-led Portland soccer office tells the home office what product tweaks, if any, are needed for the U.S. market while keeping tabs on regional market demands in the U.S. Zea and his team have overseen product development and uniform design for all 18

teams, including two --

and Vancouver, B.C., Whitecaps -- that will join the league for 2011 season.

The Timbers' jersey and uniform, which will be unveiled today, have occupied the Adidas America staff more than any other MLS uniform.

"We certainly don't want to play favorites," Zea said, referring to other MLS client teams, "but it is our hometown team."

The Adidas America soccer business unit cast a wide net to design the Timbers jersey. The staff interviewed former Timbers players going back to the 1970s, hardcore fans from the Timbers Army and Timbers management before producing more than 60 prototype designs. Several iterations were produced because the staff had been sent back to the drawing board.

So many interviews were conducted, Zea said, "to really get the flavor" of Portland and its soccer passion.

"OK, what's Portland about, what's important to the fan here," Zea said, "and try to build that into the fabric of the jersey."

While Zea wouldn't describe any aspect of the jersey before today's announcement, Timbers owner Merritt Paulson said at least one of the jerseys will be a shade of green and another, in a nod to the "Rose City," will be red.

"They understand the Timbers brand," Paulson said of the Adidas America staff. "They wouldn't if they weren't right here."

Zea, 39, recalls coveting the Copa Mundial shoe by Adidas as a lad, but his budget-minded mother settled for a lesser of the company's shoes, one with purple stripes.

The shoes were leather. As was the ball Zea's father bought him in 1982 when Spain hosted the World Cup.

"I remember playing in the rain," Zea said, "and slogging through the wet pitch and heading the ball and almost passing out."

Today, synthetic balls weigh less, repel water and hold their shape better.

And today's shoes, also made with synthetic materials, are significantly lighter than the styles worn in the '80s.

Zea wore the

in Wednesday's pickup game. At 5.8 ounces, the shoe is lighter than some track sprinter's shoes.

Zea's shoe was all-black. That's a prevailing color preference in the U.S. market compared to other major worldwide soccer markets, he said.

Twice a year, Zea, who spent a year of his 14 with the company learning how to build shoes, will visit the corporate headquarters in Germany. There, he delivers the message about prevailing trends in the U.S.

Almost always, though, it's Europe that sets the major soccer trends, and the U.S. follows.

Sometimes it's tricky to convince retailers of an anticipated trend, such as the three-quarter-length training pants that are a staple for professional teams in Europe.

"When we go to sell to soccer retailers," Zea said, "we're telling them, 'Hey, you gotta buy this three-quarter pant.'

"They're like, 'What?! I'm not buying that!'

"And we say, 'Trust me, because this is the trend that's happening."

Adidas commands about 54 percent of the soccer footwear market in the U.S., said Matt Powell, a footwear analyst with

. Nike is second with 39 percent, and Puma has 6 percent.

Nike can claim it is the largest soccer company, however, because of its sales of other soccer gear through its

, Powell said.

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