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How does the 2025 retro of the black and red “Banned” Air Jordan 1 compare to the 1985 original? It’s an important question given Jordan Brand’s declaration that the upcoming version of the Air Jordan 1, slated to release first at Jordan’s “neighborhood” retail accounts on Feb. 7, is meant to be a one-to-one recreation of the original shoe.
The release is a 40th anniversary special intended to honor in every way the most foundational Air Jordan sneaker. In making the shoe, Jordan Brand started from scratch rather than working off previous retros for the model. The brand says the shoe’s every detail has been obsessed over and that the final result is the most accurate retro of the “Bred” Air Jordan 1 (“Bred” or “Banned,” call them what you want, we don’t mind the relative neologisms) ever made. We put that claim to the test.
Complex dusted off a pair of the original black and red Air Jordan 1s from ‘85 to compare them to the 2025 version, the official model name for which is the Air Jordan 1 High 85. The pair of ‘85 originals we used for the comparison is not totally deadstock—unworn pairs are extremely hard to come by—so there are some parts of the respective shoes that are difficult to measure against each other. It’s also worth noting that the original Air Jordan 1s from ’85 were produced in five different factories, so not every pair from that era is exactly alike. Our comparison here is based on just one ’85 pair, which may differ from other originals in its exact measurements and shape.
In looking at the shoes side by side, we found that the 2025 “Bred” Jordan 1 is a faithful, although not totally perfect, reissue of Michael Jordan’s first signature sneaker. Below is a breakdown of the similarities and differences across the shoes.
The most important part of any retro sneaker that seeks to recreate the feeling of the original, and the hardest to quantify, is the shape. Jordan’s pitch with the ‘25 retro is that its shape is closer than ever to the ‘85, even better than the most recently revamped Air Jordan 1s that it rolled out in February 2020 with pairs like the “Varsity Red.” The overall shape of the ‘25 retro does look close to the original in-hand, and is slender and downward-sloping in a way some 21st century Air Jordan 1s haven’t been. Critical collectors, the people who the shoe should appeal to the most, will be able to spot minute differences. The black section at the top of the collar on our ‘85 pair is a few millimeters taller than on the ‘25 retro. Right below that, the red flap where the “Air Jordan” Wings logo hits is shorter on our ‘85 original vs. the ‘25 retro. Below that, on the quarter panel, the angle of the stitching seems to aim a little further up on the retro, creating sections in front of the heel panel and above the Swoosh that are slightly thinner than they are on the original.
Jordan Brand wanted to make the toe on the retro Air Jordan 1 “Bred” for ‘25 sleek, a la that on the original. The toe on the retro pair here is slimmer than most Air Jordan 1s, with a low profile that’s a close match to our original reference pair. The original pair bows up a bit up front, which will happen with years of wear, and our unworn 2025 retro has a toe that’s flatter to the ground. The toe cap looks taller on our retro pair, with the black leather panel extending up an extra half a centimeter.
Almost everyone who’s got an early glimpse at this year’s black and red Air Jordan 1 retro—either in person or online—has a comment about the leather, which has a flat feel and almost matte finish. It’s a departure from the tumbled leather we’ve been trained to accept as premium on other Air Jordan 1 retros, like the last “Bred” Jordan 1, from 2016. But the leather on the ‘25 pair does feel close to that used on the ‘85 pair, with less give and wrinkle to it. Our ‘85 pair is just a bit shinier, which may be an effect from aging. The color of the leather is a little off here—the original pair has a slightly deeper, darker red—but that may also be the natural result of their color dulling through the decades.
How do the two sneakers look from the back? It’s here where we found most contrast between the ‘85 original and the ‘25 retro. The ‘85 is slimmer, with a silhouette that one collector described to me as looking like a Coke bottle, with a squeeze above the heel. The ‘25 doesn’t have quite the same hourglass shape; it looks a little wider. There are differences toward the top of the heel, too, where our ‘85 pair has a narrower natural stance around the collar and a section of black padding that’s taller by a few millimeters vs. the ‘25 retro. On top of that padding, the little lip that runs down into the inside of the shoe is shorter on the ‘85 than it is on the ‘25.
One overlooked quirk on the original ‘85 “Banned” Air Jordans is that the Swoosh logo on the upper is made of a synthetic material. The ‘25 pair takes the same approach, although the material difference from the Swoosh to the upper it sits on is more perceptible on the original pair than it is on our retro. That tiny difference aside, the shapes of the Swooshes on the respective shoe are a close match.
The nylon material used on the tongues of our ‘85 and ‘25 pairs is a close match. The tongue on our ‘85 pair feels like it sits up just a bit higher on the shoe as it extends out of the collar. The actual “Nike Air” logo on the tongue tab is slightly different across the two shoes. The ‘85 pair has more black space above the logo, where the ‘25 pair has the logo nearly flush with the top of the tongue. The ‘85 pair also has a Swoosh with a tail that angles more upward where the ‘25 pair’s Swoosh is more horizontal.
Jordan Brand’s said that it digitally scanned the pattern along the midsole of the original Jordan 1, which reads like a series of tiny chevrons, in order to recreate it for the ‘25 retro. The midsoles of our ‘85 and ‘25 pairs aren’t close in color, which is to be expected due to aging on the original pair, but the pattern on that section is a good match. If anything, what’s used on the ‘25 pair feels a little more random and less uniform than the cuts etched into the rubber on the original ‘85 pair. We could not find any significant differences on the outsoles of the sneakers.
After spending time with the original black and red Air Jordan 1 from 1985 and comparing it to the 2025 retro of the same colorway, we’re inclined to believe Jordan Brand’s claim that this year’s release is the most accurate Jordan 1 retro to date. (As do the handful of longtime Air Jordan collectors Complex has spoken to about the retro in the lead-up to its release.) The ‘25 retro goes to great lengths to get the look of the original right. Many of those efforts—the vamp underlay that runs down to the strobel to protect the shape of the toe, the original-style board lasting, the hidden detail under the sockliner—will be imperceptible to the vast majority of consumers. As will the differences we’ve highlighted here, most of which won’t likely irk anyone other than the nitpickiest of collectors. (That’s an important group, by the way, and they deserve to be catered to.) Squint a bit, look past those slight changes, and the Air Jordan 1 “Bred” 2025 retro is a pretty damn accurate facsimile of the original “Banned” Air Jordans.
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