A tennis ball sits inside the heel of Lacoste’s new Ace-T shoe

Lacoste brought a tennis ball into the construction of its latest runway shoe. The Ace-T has a split heel with a ball held between the upper section and the platform below. Its bright yellow felt and curved seam remain exposed, making the tennis reference visible from the side and back.

The shoe appeared in Lacoste’s Spring/Summer 2027 presentation on October 4, 2026. Led by creative director Pelagia Kolotouros, the collection was shown on the Philippe Chatrier court at Roland-Garros in Paris. Its title, “Dress Code: No White Required”, set out a collection that explored personal expression through tennis clothing and accessories.

The ball gives that idea a particularly direct form. An object associated with play becomes a recognisable part of the shoe, carrying the sport’s identity into a fashion silhouette.

The heel leaves the tennis ball exposed

The heel opens into a V-shaped structure around the ball. The lower platform extends beneath it, while the section supporting the wearer’s foot sits above. This creates a gap that makes the ball one of the shoe’s defining features.

A large TPU cage wraps the upper, with diamond-shaped openings over mesh and canvas layers. Angled openings also break up the sole. The white version pairs its yellow ball with matching accents on the heel tab and lacing hardware.

Lacoste’s official collection notes identify the footwear family as ACE-T1 and describe its cage as a reference to a tennis net under tension. The design extends across a sneaker, a tennis-ball wedge and a lace-up pump.

That wider family connects several parts of the game to footwear. The net supplies a pattern and structure, while the ball becomes an object embedded in the heel. Both references remain easy to recognise at the scale of a shoe.

Roland-Garros supplied the setting

The runway followed an infinity loop across the clay court, with large piles of clay forming part of the set. The collection also drew on the traces left by playing, including clay-marked clothing and softened fabrics.

That setting placed the new footwear inside Lacoste’s tennis heritage. The court, materials and accessories gave the collection a shared reference, while the heel supplied a detail that could travel easily into close-up product photographs.

The Ace-T is planned for Spring/Summer 2027. An exact launch date has yet to be announced. For now, the exposed ball and open cage establish the design’s identity ahead of its release.

Credits

Ace-T / ACE-T1, Spring/Summer 2027. Brand: Lacoste, France. Creative Director: Pelagia Kolotouros. Collection: Dress Code: No White Required. Runway presentation: October 4, 2026, Philippe Chatrier court, Roland-Garros, Paris. Planned release season: Spring/Summer 2027.