Under Armour Velociti SPD Review: Under Armour Has Arrived

Introduction to the Under Armour Velociti SPD

RENALDO: Under Armour. What can I say about my hometown brand that hasn’t already been said? Founded in the glory days of 1996, Under Armour has fought tooth and nail to maintain its relevance on the grand stage of athletic equipment, becoming a brand one can honestly rely on due to its sheer determination to stay. One day, you’ll find a few of its shoes on a billboard in Manhattan, and last season’s attempts at relevance at your local discount store. The game isn’t easy, and with all that determination, there’s bound to be some critique.

Under Armour, for me, is a bit of an odd duck.

Born and raised in Baltimore, I feel like I should be rocking this brand more out of pride than anything. Instead, I’ve been disappointed by many of its efforts in the past. Actually, disappointed is putting it lightly. With community comes gossip. And shoes are the first thing a runner will critique when someone is experiencing any foot pain. Unfortunately, UA was always a prime suspect if any of its shoes were in the repertoire.

This time around, UA appears to be trying something new at the offices and has actually delivered a substantial result with its new Velociti SPD.

Has it finally given us something to rave about?

KALEB: If there’s one company that’s more “Brooks” than Brooks, it’s Under Armour. What I mean is, to me, Under Armour is a brand for footwear that I’d only expect to see on one of two kinds of people: sponsored athletes, or those who really don’t know that there are better options from literally everyone else.

Under Armour is indeed, as Reno put it, an odd duck. Perhaps it’s only now grasping the full potential of the running shoe market; maybe it’s finally realized that it sponsors successful collegiate track programs whose athletes wear gear from other brands; or maybe it has simply grown tired of relying solely on sales of underwear and compression gear.

Whatever it is, the Baltimore brand has just recently started taking itself seriously, it seems, with mildly competitive releases like the Flow Velociti Elite 2, and yeah, that’s kind of it. But perhaps the past is in the past. Under Armour is revamping its Velociti line this year, transforming it from a one-off pair of race-day and workout shoes into a full rotation for runners to utilize for both training and race day. Joining the preexisting Velociti Elite (race day) and Pro 2 (speed shoe), the base model of the Velociti line will be the new Velociti SPD, a snappy, “daily speed” workhorse trainer.

Usually I’d be skeptical about an Under Armour release, but — spoiler alert — I’ve logged about 70 miles in this sucker and it just might be on my short list of running shoes I’d recommend to just about anyone…

RYAN: Alrighty, I’m back again. Look at me, two-for-two on Under Armour reviews for 2025. Well, I’d say you can take everything that I wrote about the Velociti Pro 2 and pare it down to a daily trainer, and you’d get the Velociti SPD… but then I’d be lying. Not in a bad way, though, because I’d have to correct myself and tell you that this is the shoe that gets it right.

Yes, it does less, and yes, it’s a little more limited in ambition, but I think it works better. It skips the plate and the flare, instead offering a simple and straightforward running experience. I’ve worn the Velociti SPD for by far the most miles of any Under Armour shoe, leaving the much more expensive Pro 2 and Elite 3 sitting impatiently on the shelf while I reach for the cheaper option, as if it’s going out of style.

The boys have given you most of the details about Under Armour’s chosen technology above, so let’s just get to the likes and dislikes.

What we like about the Under Armour Velociti SPD

RENALDO: Starting from the top, we’ve got a Leno Weave upper that’s, honestly, pretty good. It’s breathable and light, almost reminiscent of racers from a few years ago, when running was on everyone’s lips, it seems. UA at least must have looked back on those days with some fondness, and I actually praise them for opting for a “less is more” approach here. A lot of older Under Armour shoes often appear to have some extra rubber or plastic on the upper, primarily for looks, from what I could gather, but it just made the shoe look tacky. So, glad there’s none of that here.

Working our way down, we have the Hovr Plus beaded foam midsole, which, I gotta say, makes this the absolute best Under Armour shoe I’ve ever stood in. I feel like that’s all I really should have to say on that, but this is a review and I’d like to try and keep some integrity here. With that 8 mm drop, this shoe feels very natural on foot. Each step actually bouncing right back at all the right pressure points you’d really want a daily trainer to coddle on the run. I can’t speak enough about it, and I actually encourage you to try it. It’s Under Armour; your local shoe store will let you try it.

Carrying all this is a real-deal rubber outsole, a serious improvement to the Flow sole of yesteryear. This simple change makes the Velociti SPD quite the weapon in a runner’s arsenal. But unlike an arsenal, you will more than likely be wearing these than carrying them in an attache case.

The feel of this shoe on your foot makes you feel almost like an action star. The propulsion is practically automatic, giving you a ready-to-rip feel. Personally, I find my niche with this shoe as an actual, factual, everyday wearable, from work, to the supermarket, to a quick jog, to a full-on long run, to getting jiggy on the dance floor. The Velociti SPD handles it all surprisingly well with a feel that’s rather addictive. I’m no professional, but if this is what they’re giving them only a few miles away, this is something I can be proud of.

KALEB: In my opinion, the best daily trainer is the one I can wear, well, daily. Having a dedicated workout shoe is fine and good, but going back and forth from a super-aggressive tempo trainer to a mushy, pillow-like easy day shoe isn’t what I want every week. Sometimes I want simplicity, so workout versatility is probably one of the foremost traits I admire in a daily trainer, and the Velociti SPD simply nailed the mix of comfort and performance I look for.

Underfoot, the moderate 32-24 mm stack of beaded HTPU foam (Under Armour calls this compound Hovr Plus) feels perfect for all kinds of training. I took the Velociti SPD out for long runs, tempo work, and even hard kilometer repeats, and the foam felt amazing. It’s somewhere in that medium-density sweet spot that’s firm enough for pushing the pace hard, but just soft enough that slow paces aren’t hard on the legs. HTPU isn’t the most explosive foam, but there’s a noticeable bounce underfoot, assisted by the most subtle of rocker geometries. And, since TPU compounds in general tend to last forever, I have no concerns about the lifetime of this shoe.

Up top, the Leno Weave upper is fantastic, breathable, and has the perfect amount of volume and stretch for multiple foot types. It’s incredibly comfortable while still being fairly lightweight. This shoe comes in under 8 oz. for a US M9.

I honestly don’t have much more to say, in a good way. This shoe is just a goldilocks for me, and it costs $130 in a market that’s regularly pumping out lower-quality trainers for $160.

RYAN: As you could imagine, I agree with my co-reviewers above. I really, really like the Velociti SPD because it’s a shoe I can slip on and go out the door in. It doesn’t really matter what I’m running; I trust that this one is ready for it. Would I take it for my fastest speed workouts? No, probably not, but I find that it works for most other things. Whether I’m headed to run club, shakin’ it out in the morning, or knocking off a few miles as the temperatures finally taper, I just really like this shoe.

I’d even go so far as to say that this is the best use of Under Armour’s Hovr Plus foam. There’s no plate to stiffen the HTPU compound, so I get to enjoy the spongy bounce sensation. It’s not quite as lively as something like New Balance’s FuelCell, but it’s also more stable and more reliable. The 32 mm of foam in the heel doesn’t quite crack our max-cushion rankings, making this a shoe that’s almost more enjoyable for the short days — a rarity among daily options right now.

Also, as Kaleb noted, this is an impressively light shoe. I didn’t expect much when unboxing a daily trainer from a company I’d previously reserved for apparel, but I had to laugh as I pulled this one out of the box. Mix in a smooth rocker geometry, and there’s not much the Velociti SPD needs to change for its next generation… because there definitely will be one.

What we don’t like about the Under Armour Velociti SPD

RENALDO: This shoe is ugly as sin.

Despite all these improvements, the colorway we received was pure Under Armour. Cobalt grey, with black and grey accents. Oh, and a dull green UA logo for that “pop.” For some, this may be the new “low profile” look you’ve been looking to add to your streetwear closet. But, to me, this shoe sucks to look at. Plain and simple. I could see this shoe on the protagonist of some dystopian YA novel.

Put this one back in the oven.

KALEB: This shoe is honestly almost perfect. I have a few nitpicks, and they’re not dealbreakers. I love the volume and fit of the upper on the Velociti SPD. The only small gripe I have with it is that it has just a bit too much stretch, so taking corners hard sometimes feels a little sketchy. Underfoot, the rubber has just a little bit more wear than I’d like for a shoe that I think can last as long as I think the Velociti SPD can. Neither of these things detracts from the quality of the shoe enough to bother me. For what it’s marketed as, this is an absolute steal of a daily trainer.

And, yeah. I agree with Reno that this shoe looks like a pair of dress socks. However, I did receive a bunch of compliments on them the first day I wore them, so…??? Make of that as you will, I guess.

RYAN: So, uhh, yeah. I could imagine why Kaleb got positive comments on the Velociti SPD at his small college in Pennsylvania, while Renaldo presumably got flamed at the club. Know your audience, ya know? As a guy who grew up near that small college but now resides closer to that club, I have to agree with Renaldo. Under Armour has decent designs, but they’re let down by terrible colorways.

I think when this one arrived, I opened the box and laughed in shades of Walmart. It’s some kind of Seattle Seahawks-looking green and gray, and it’s just kinda underwhelming. If Under Armour had chosen just about any other launch colorway, it probably would have worked, but like this one just ain’t it.

Also, I think the shoe runs a smidge long, but that might just be my foot that lands between a US M7.5 and M8.

Final thoughts on the Under Armour Velociti SPD

RENALDO: I’ll give it up. Under Armour made a shoe that I like. The fit and feel are great, running in it is great, but it just looks a little ugly. And in my opinion, a subjective error is the best kind of error. Good Job, UA.

KALEB: The Under Armour Velociti SPD is more than just a good daily trainer. It might be the perfect shoe for anyone getting into running. The underfoot feel is awesome, the versatility is incredible, the fit and durability are of high quality, and it does it all for a price far below the average trainer these days.

For fans of plateless daily trainers that can handle anything, or for new runners looking for an affordable shoe that can do whatever they need it to, the Velociti SPD might be my number one recommendation right now.

RYAN: There’s oh, so much good about the Velociti SPD. Seriously, I think this is the most important shoe Under Armour has ever made. Yes, more than the Velociti Elite that Sharon Lokedi has been winning major marathons in. Why? Because this is the one that people will actually buy and run in — and they’ll keep running in it for miles and miles because it will last a long time and keep coming back for more. Please, though, can someone get us some new colorways?

You can pick up the Under Armour Velociti SPD for $130 from Under Armour by using the buttons below.