Smelly football boots....!

[Legacy]

OK - this is a new problem for us, as DS didn't used to have footie boots at school until this term.

So..... he uses them once a week (I think) at school, and at weekends. Up til now he's brought them home on a Friday for use on Sunday.

But last week they were so vile smelling that I ended up going out and buying a new pair (which to be fair he needed anyway, as his feet had grown).

The problem is that they get wet or sweaty and school and them they are left to fester in the boot bag all week [vomit icon]

What do you do with footie boots? If I get him to bring them home earlier how do I dry them out in this damp weather.
Am I meant to stuff them with newspaper or soemthing?

Wish I had a boot room, with heated spikes, like in ski chalets!

I would dry them out on the radiator, then sprinkle a teaspoon or so of bicarbonate of soda in them, which will get rid of the smell. This worked on my dh's stinking work shoes!

Stuffing with newspaper is good - I also stand them on newspaper, underneath a radiator (as the heat goes up they don't get baked but do dry out quicker). If they're soaked you need to change the stuffing at least once. Main thing though is to get them home and out of stinky bootbag ASAP, as you said.

If you want to dry them in a hurry, make a platform of newspaper or cardboard on top of a radiator and balance them upside-down on that (can be a bit precarious, that one!)

Some boots are actually plastic, which is not good for shoes in general but I think is OK for sports boots as they don't get worn for long, and it stops them getting sodden.