We’ll cover all the steps to spot fake vs real UNC Jordan 1s.
How to tell if University Blue Jordan 1s are fake
To tell if your University Blue Jordan 1s are fake, look inside the tongue. Fakes always have thinner and misplaced inscriptions.
1. Interior tongue label
Beginning with the “QUALITY” text on the upper side of the label, the fake pair’s letters are too thin.
The same print has bigger letters than the authentic pair.
On the “SWOOSH ®” inscription, the letters are too thin and they are too boxy. They are a bit narrower than the authentic pair’s text.
The “VOTRE” word on the replica University Blue 1s looks too tall and too thick, and on the authentic pair, it looks shorter and thinner.
As for the two lines of text, both of the lines that say that the shoes were made in China, the inscriptions on the fake pairs are too thin.
Expert Legit Check - Let our team look at your Jordans:
2. Size tag
In the image with the fake vs real Air Jordan 1 University Blue pairs above:
The style code (“555088-134“) is too small and thicker than the authentic pair’s text, which is bigger and thinner.
The “UPC” text and its numbers are way thicker than the ones on the genuine shoes.
The fake pair has the lines of text stating the shoes being made in China looking way thicker than the ones on the genuine shoes, which have their text thinner.
3. Hourglass shape
The fake shoes have a tubular shape.
They’re not curvy at the top and narrow at the bottom.
Hence, the fake pair doesn’t look like an hourglass from the back.
On the real University Blue Jordan 1s:
The top + bottom sides are curvy.
In the middle of the shoes, there is a narrowing on both sides.
This is what we call the “authentic hourglass shape”.
If that wasn’t so clear, we get you – that’s why we’ve done our homework and we made it easier to understand with the help of an even more detailed fake vs real Air Jordan 1 University Blue image below.
The green lines in the image show you how the authentic pair’s shape is way curvier and way narrower in the middle compared to the fake pair’s shape.
There you have it: the authentic shoes have a really detailed shape, whereas the replica University Blue Jordan 1s have a fatter and less curvy/narrow shape.
Bear in mind that we recommend checking this step only when the shoes are not being worn, as the shape is way easier to be seen when the shoes are off-foot.
4. Toe box
The fake pair’s toe box looks too little curvy, hence it is too flat.
The authentic toe box and the sole are curvier and a bit thicker than the ones on the replica shoes.
Yet again, we recommend checking this spot only when the shoes are off-foot, as the shoes being worn can totally change the situation when legit checking them.
A quick mention:
The steps we’ve written so far are the BEST ways to authenticate this item
The next few steps are still reliable methods…
… but they apply to non-top-versions of replicas available for this item
If in doubt, we recommend double-checking the steps we’ve explained above this line.
5. Air Jordan logo text
The replica UNC 1s have their text at the wrong thickness:
Starting with the “AIR JORDAN” text, the fake shoes have their inscriptions looking too thin, and how the authentic AJ1s have their text thicker.
Regarding the “TM” text next to the Air Jordan logo, you can observe how the fake pair’s “TM” text looks too thin and very narrow.
6. Air Jordan logo wings
The replica pair’s wings are placed too close to each other.
The ones on the right side of the logo almost make contact with each other.
The real wings are placed further away from each other, as there is more room in-between them.
7. Perforations
The fake pair’s holes on the toe box look too big, too wide, and too deep.
On the other hand, the legitimate Air Jordan 1 University Blue shoes have their toe box’s perforations looking smaller, narrower, and less deep when compared with the fake shoes.
8. Corner stitching
The fake pair’s corner stitching is too thin, as the stitches are a bit narrower than the authentic shoes’ stitches.
This flaw always occurs on the Air Jordan 1 Banned as well. Check out that one as well!
9. Rear patch
The fake shoes have patch stitches too thin and too short.
The authentic University Blue 1s have their stitching looking thicker and longer than the threads found on the fake shoes.
Shortlist: Spot fake Jordan 1 University Blue
Have a look at the interior tongue label with multiple lines of text, as the replica pairs always have their text flawed.
Brief the size tag inside your Air Jordan 1s, as the fake shoes tend to have their text either really thin or really thick.
Look at the hourglass shape from the rear side of your shoes. The fake Air Jordan 1 pair usually have their shape too straight.
Verify the toe box of your Air Jordan 1s. In most cases, the fake AJ1 pairs have their toe box looking over-inflated.
Look at the “Air Jordan TM” text in the classic Air Jordan 1 logo of your shoes. Usually, the fake AJ1 pairs have their text at the wrong thickness.
Inspect the space between the wings in the classic Air Jordan 1 logo of your shoes. Mostly, the fake AJ1 pairs have their wings either placed too close to each other or too far away from each other.
Look at the toe box and its perforations. Usually, the fake pairs have their holes looking too small and narrow on the toe box.
Examine the corner stitching on the side of your shoes, as most of the fake pairs have their stitching looking too thin and also placed too close to the Nike Swoosh logo.
Verify the patch on the back of the shoes, where the Nike Swoosh logos meet together. The fake pairs usually have their patch looking too boxy.
The 9 detailed steps outlined above might not be so practical when you are in a hurry or when you want to buy sneakers online.
That is why we have compiled this quick 60-second solution to authenticating your sneakers.
Expert Jordan 1 UNC Authentication
If you need help with the authentication of your Air Jordan 1s, we’ve got you covered.
All you have to do is send us good-quality pictures of your Air Jordan 1 sneakers and we will get back to you with the results within 24 to 48 hours. The results will also come with a report on why we believe your sneakers are fake or authentic.
That brings us to the end of our real vs fake Air Jordan 1 legit check guide. We will continue to update this article as better and newer comparisons are put out.
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About the Author
David is the co-founder and co-CEO of Legit Check By Ch. David's experience: 5+ years of creating educational content in the fashion industry. 6+ years of authenticating luxury items. Currently, David is the Head Editor of the LCBC Library, where 1,000,000+ words have been published, in free guides, for over 1,000 items.