A sneakerhead is someone who collects and trades trainers as a hobby, usually with an encyclopaedic knowledge of models, colourways and release dates. Dictionaries first recorded the word in the late 1990s, pairing sneaker with head in its slang sense of devoted fan.
At the top of the hobby, trainers behave like fine art. In April 2023 a pair of Nike Air Jordan 13s worn by Michael Jordan in Game 2 of the 1998 NBA Finals sold at Sotheby’s for 2.2 million dollars, a record for sneakers at auction. Jordan had scored 37 points that night in a win over the Utah Jazz and then handed the shoes to a ball boy, whose souvenir turned out to be considerably better than a signed photograph. For most collectors the obsession stays more modest: a wall of boxes, a spreadsheet and firm opinions about laces.