KidSuper and BAPE Are Prepping 48 World Cup BAPE STA™ Colorways

The road to the 2026 FIFA World Cup is already loaded with footwear stories, and KidSuper and BAPE may have one of the biggest on the way. Following their first collaboration in 2025, Colm Dillane’s KidSuper and BAPE are reportedly reuniting for a massive BAPE STA™ project built around all 48 nations set to compete in next year’s tournament.

The concept is simple, but huge in scale: one BAPE STA™ colorway for each participating country. Early pairs have already surfaced, showing the model dressed in bold patent-leather builds with country-specific color blocking, national abbreviations at the heel, BAPE branding on the midsole, and the signature STA logo worked into each design.

A major story within the wider project is the involvement of SneakerDenn, the London-based sneaker curator, archivist, and longtime BAPE STA™ collector. After contributing to the project's early creative direction, SneakerDenn designed six of the final colorways set to release this week: France, Japan, Sweden, Australia, South Korea, and Uruguay.

Rather than simply pulling from national flags, SneakerDenn approached the designs through the lens of football kit identity. France leans into its deep blue football heritage with gold accents, while Japan pairs royal blue and white with subtle red detailing, tying back to both its national team look and BAPE’s Japanese roots. Uruguay arrives in sky blue with black contrast, Sweden sticks to its unmistakable yellow-and-blue setup, Australia gets a direct green-and-gold treatment, and South Korea moves through a sharper red-and-black palette reflective of recent kit eras.

For SneakerDenn, the project marks a major shift from collector and storyteller to official collaborator, with digital concepts now moving into public release. For KidSuper and BAPE, it adds another layer to what already looks like one of the most ambitious sneaker projects tied to the 2026 World Cup.

The KidSuper x BAPE World Cup BAPE STA™ collection is expected to release via KidSuper as a preorder, with all 48 countries reportedly available to the public. Stay tuned for confirmed release details.