- The next Beats headphones appear again
- They have appeared on the neck of a World Cup player, again
- Fans are trying to accept that color.
When currently unannounced Beats headphones were spotted in social media posts by Spanish player Lamine Yamal ahead of the 2026 World Cup, I said “there’s a good chance we’ll see more of them.” Well, I called him because it happened again.
A series of Instagram posts by South Korean midfielder Lee Kang-in, posted to celebrate the team’s 2-1 victory over Czechia in their first match of the tournament, give pride of place to the same Beats headphones we saw earlier.
This time, however, instead of a pink shade, they come in white and… a neon yellow that I won’t politely refer to as “Sourz Vomit,” even though it looks like the result of too many alcopops. How to describe it besides “slime” or “vomit”?
I know what you’re thinking: maybe they gave it to Lee to match his team colors? No, South Korea plays in red and black, with the occasional purple, blue and lavender away jersey for the 2026 World Cup.
Some commenters are using this peculiar color combination as evidence that the cans will have replaceable cups, clearly hoping that Beats will let them ditch the earpads for something else, but that feels like grasping at straws.
There’s no real evidence of this, and the faint hint of a yellow headband behind Lee’s neck suggests that this is just two-tone cans, rather than a choice on his part.
The view gives us a better look at the rounded construction of these new cans, which replace the ’90s chic of previous Beats cans with a stepped construction that looks like CMF headphones. Beyond the color options, they actually look pretty bland.
For me, the most attractive part of the redesign is the band, which looks much thinner than before and circular, so it will potentially be much more comfortable to wear. We’ll have to see, but the launch is likely to come right after this World Cup runway.
Has anyone outside of a World Cup team used them yet?
Just like when we saw them with Lamine Yamal, Lee Kang-in is not photographed wearing the new Beats headphones, although he keeps them closer to his person.
While Yamal kept them at a distance, clipping them to her bag and only being photographed with them around her neck once, Lee has them around her neck several times.
None of these footballers have been seen using the new Beats headphones. Maybe having headphones, but not using them, is what’s cool. Or maybe you saw our critical review of the Beats Solo 4 and want to keep the new pair at arm’s length.
It’s unlikely that Apple chose two specific players out of hundreds to give away its headphones, so as the World Cup group stage progresses, we’ll likely see more sightings of the Beats.
We’ve glimpsed pink and white-yellow, and hopefully we’ll see a few more color options appear.
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