Harry Maguire in claret and blue, Declan Rice in Arsenal red, Harry Kane in Lederhosen?
There’s a whole host of sartorial changes this summer.
Here Underdog Sports Marketing founder Ged Colleypriest runs the rule over the new shirts for the upcoming season.
Despite working in the sports industry for over a decade, please don’t expect any insight in this piece.
It’s simply the opinion of a man approaching his forties and spending far too much energy on opining about the latest football fashion.
1. Liverpool Away
A wonderful throw back to Liverpool’s away kit from the mid nineties, as worn in the 1996 FA Cup Final. A game largely remembered for Liverpool’s god awful white suits as adorned by the ‘Spice Boys’. But there’s no fashion faux pas on display here. Nike took the DNA of a cult classic and put a brilliant contemporary spin on it. The fact that their great rivals Adidas made the original is as cheeky as a night on the tiles with Redknapp and McMananaman.
2. Newcastle United Home
Newcastle’s black and white stripes are such an iconic look that they really shouldn’t be messed with. An approach that Castore has adopted this season. This is a kit so beautiful that I’ve been able to look past the Saudi sportswashing sponsorships. Stick a Newcastle Brown Ale logo into the middle and hang this shirt in the Louvre. The less said about the Saudi-green away strip the better.
3. Nottingham Forest Home
I may spend my days helping sports teams to find sponsors, but this is a timely reminder how great football kits look without the clutter. Whilst Forest’s search for a front of shirt deal continues, they’ve teamed up with Adidas to produce this instant classic. There’s more than a subtle nod to Brian Clough’s European Cup winning team with this number, which can never be a bad thing.
4. Crystal Palace Home
Life, death, taxes and Crystal Palace producing a kit that makes this list every year. As a Charlton fan, it always pains me to praise our South London neighbours but they’ve done it again. The half and half layout is a nice twist on the Eagles usual red and blue stripes. Plus the silhouette of The Crystal Palace (as in the actual palace) is a great nod to the club’s history, as they celebrate 10 consecutive years in the Premier League. I’m not in the slightest bit jealous.
5. Brighton and Hove Albion Home
Brighton are continual high performers in my kit league. Mainly due to their ability to produce nice kits without fucking about. It’s blue, it’s white, it’s striped, it looks like a deck chair. What’s not to love?
6. Luton Town Home
There’s loads to love about Luton’s return to top flight football. As a man who created a company called Underdog,it’s a joy to see a team battle back from non-league to the top table. They also refuse to do sponsorship deals with bookmakers, maybe there is a bit of insight in this piece after all! As for the kit,I was torn between picking the home and away. Growing up in the 90s I firmly remember The Hatters first choice kit being white, but in recent times they’ve opted for orange. This debate apparently split the fanbase so much that they had a vote about ten years ago, with orange coming out the winner. So who am I to argue with the Kenilworth faithful?
7. Bournemouth Home
Retro kits always get instant bonus points from me and this black and cherry number from Bournemouth is no exception. I lived in the town for a bit as a kid and remember the source material. From the days when they played at the crumbling Dean Court, had whip rounds from the fans to sign players and a certain Eddie Howe was their centre half. Things may be a bit more glamorous now but this number is likely to please the die hards who remember bleaker times.
8. Chelsea Home
This one has made plenty of headlines, not least because the Blues had no sponsor when it was released. Although it looks as though an eleventh hour deal has been done now. The Nike kit is inspired by the 90s era, when Vialli, Gullit and Di Matteo landed in West London. The latter actually features in the promotional campaign and the shirt is a nice throwback to the early year of the Premier League.
9. Sheffield United Home
Another sponsor-less shirt, are we spotting a worrying trend for the industry? Probably, but in the meantime let’s enjoy another throwback kit. This time to 1997/98, a season that saw Alan Kelly and Simon Tracey battle it out for the keeping gloves, Brian Deane made a return to Bramall Lane and pair of legends in Paul McGrath and Ian Rush did the red and white stripes. A squad full of nostalgia, just like this strip.
10. Fulham Home
I’ve thought long and hard about the alternate red and white Adidas stripes on this one. In the end I’ve decided I like them but not enough to get any higher than mid-table. The large bookie sponsor probably has something to do with it too. Which looks even bigger on Mitrovic’s huge chest.
Ged Colleypriest is the founder of Underdog Sports Marketing