Gavin Hope

Football Kit Top Trumps – Premier League 2018/19

Jul 11, 2019Posted in Premier League Kit LogTagged EPL, Football, Fun, Kit Geek, Kits, Premier League, Soccer, Top Trumps1 Comment

It is time for one final review of the Home kits worn by the Premier League teams in the 2018/19 season, this time in the form of the classic “Top Trump” card.

I was torn on going for an opinion based scoring system based on design, aesthetics and general use, however I decided to go for a more factual based performance of the kit, so our ranking areas are:

League Games Worn
Variations of Kit
Games Won
Points Won
Points per game

So for your “pleasure”, here are the Home Kits worn in 2018/19 Premier League Season in Top Trumps!

Arsenal and AFC Bournemouth*

*AFC Bournemouth wore their 2019/20 Home kit in the last home game against Tottenham Hotspur, this game is NOT included in the data for their card (they won 1-0).

Brighton & Hove Albion and Burnley

Cardiff City and Chelsea*

*Cheslea wore their 2019/20 Home kit in the last home game against Watford, this game is NOT included in the data for their card (they won 3-0).

Crystal Palace* and Everton

*Crystal Palace wore their 2019/20 Home kit in the last home game against AFC Bournemouth, this game is NOT included in the data for their card (they won 5-3).

Fulham and Huddersfield Town

Leicester City* and Liverpool

*Leicester City wore their 2019/20 Home kit in the last home game against Chelsea, this game is NOT included in the data for their card (they drew 0-0).

Manchester City and Manchester United

Newcastle United and Southampton

Tottenham Hotspur and Watford

West Ham United and Wolverhampton Wanderers

Any shocks here, maybe Watford beating Chelsea in the numbers of games worn or Liverpool beating Manchester City in Points per game!

I am planning on creating Away and Third Kit Top Trumps in the coming weeks, as well as Champions League Kits.

Let me know your thoughts by using the comments field below or over at my Twitter Account @Kit_Geek

Champions League – Kit Log 2018/19

Jun 3, 2019Posted in GeneralTagged Champions League, Football, Football Kits, Kit Geek, Kit Log, Kits, Liverpool, TottenhamLeave a comment

On a hot June evening in The Wanda Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid, Liverpool lifted their 6th Champions League (European Cup) in their History with a 2-0 victory over first time finalists Tottenham Hotspur.

Now the competition has come to a close, it is time to wrap up the 2018/19 Champions League Kit Log, to review the kits worn through out the Group Stages please see my previous post – Champions League, Kit Log – Group Stages

In the 29 Knock out games of the competition, the following kits were worn:

Home – 62% (33 Full Home, 3 Variations)
Away – 26% (11 Full Away, 4 Variations)
3rd Kits – 12% (4 Full 3rd, 3 Variations)

Competition Kit Overview

We can see what the teams wore through out the competition below:

Group A – Atletico Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, AS Monaco, Club Brugges

Group B – Barcelona, Tottenham Hotspur, PSV Eindhoven, Inter Milan

Group C – Paris St,Germain, Napoli, Liverpool, Red Star Belgrade

Group D – Lokomotive Moscow, FC Porto, FC Schalke 04, Galatasaray

Group E – Bayern Munich, Benfica, Ajax Amsterdam, AEK Athens

Group F – Manchester City, Shakhtar Donetsk, Olympique Lyonnais, Hoffenheim

Group G – Real Madrid, AS Roma, CSKA Moscow, Viktoria Plzen

Group H – Juventus, Manchester United, Valencia, BSC Young Boys

Kit Highlights

Some of my favourite Kits worn through the Knock Out Stages:

Schalke 3rd (Variation) worn against Man City – all though losing 7-0 on the night, the team did stand out in this all “Gecko Green” kit from Umbro.

FC Barcelona’s home kit really works well, the use of the dark blue shorts and socks is the what makes the kit stand out for me and with the rumours that Barcelona will use a chequered shirt in 2019/20 this “classic” striped shirt has certainly stood out from other Nike efforts in the 2018/19 season.

And that wraps up the 2018/19 Kit Logs, please let me know thoughts regarding Kits Worn in The Champions League in the comments below or via Twitter – @Kit_Geek

Kit News, Edition 2 – West Ham United & Umbro 2019/20

May 30, 2019May 30, 2019Posted in General, Kit NewsTagged FA Cup, Football, Football Kits, Kit Geek, Kit News, Kits, umbro, West Ham UnitedLeave a comment

I would not normally write a post about one kit, however I want to take some time to talk about West Ham United’s Home and Away Kits for 2019/20 season from Umbro.

There were some leaked images hitting the internet earlier on this week and my initial thoughts were please let this be real…. and Finally on Wednesday the official release and the relief to know that those images were indeed what we will see gracing the London Stadium and other Premier League grounds in this upcoming season.

Looking at the launch of kit, the marketing is already talking about “Inspired by the Class of ’80” and then digging into detail behind the design, it is clear that Umbro were looking to create a retro feel for their designs for “The Hammers”. – Click here to go to West Ham’s page

Home Kit

The home kit based on the classic admiral kit used between 1977 and 1980 is paired with Claret shorts and socks as first choice, from what I can see and research this is the first time in the club’s history that this colour combination has been used as default home kit.

Away Kit

The away kit is based on the kit worn in the 1980 FA Cup Final win against Arsenal and it a simple all white kit and as it’s 1980 cousin has some “claret and blue” striped trim on collar and sleeve cuffs, there is also some detailing celebrating that Cup win on the back of the neck.

Something else that West Ham United have done right, is to offer fans both home and away kits an option of a “Unsponsored” version of the shirts, however this still includes the club’s sleeve sponsor (it is one of the more aesthetically pleasing). From my initial tweet about this, one that has hit a chord with fans across all clubs – see tweet here

These kits have set a high bar for the 2019/20 kits and I applaud what Umbro and West Ham United have done here…..

Quite simply, this is retro done right!

Please let me know your thoughts about this kit on the comments below or via Twitter – @Kit_Geek

Kit News, Edition 1 – A Hummel renaissancei

May 26, 2019May 26, 2019Posted in Kit NewsTagged Adidas, Football, Football Kits, Hummel, Kit Geek, Kit News, Kits, Ligue 1, Nike, Premier League, Puma, Serie A, SoccerLeave a comment

Kit news is coming thick and fast, so I thought it was a good opportunity to have a look at what we have seen over the past few days in terms of Kit News.

Confirmed Kits

Middlesbrough – Hummel have delivered a look in the new home kit for Middlesbrough that is a return to a classic look for Boro and one that synonymous with the club.

Inter Milan – Striped kits are always difficult to deliver something new or give a fresh approach to the design, however Inter Milan are a club that often looked to do this over the years and this effort from Nike for 2019/20 is something different and does stand out from the others

Cambridge United – A new Kit deal for Cambridge United with Hummel and the first home Kit is a real classic in design, a clean and simple look on The U’s traditional amber and black. Looks like Hummel will be bigger players in the kit market in 2019/20 and if what we have seen so far is anything to go by we should be in for a treat.

Leicester City – The launch of Leicester City’s away and 3rd kits was no surprise with these kits leaked a few weeks ago. The Away, a pink version of the kit worn by Germany in 2018 World Cup and 3rd Kit, a dark grey version of the Adidas Tiro 19 template. After the introduction of their new home kit in the final game of the season, this completes the kits for the Foxes in 2019/20.

Olymique de Marseille – OM in the second season with Puma have seen the launch of their new home kit sees an introduction on sky blue pinstripe with an all white kit. The kit is also being marketed as 120th Anniversary kit.

AS Roma – Nike have returned to a more classic look for AS Roma this coming season, with the traditional red shirt being paired with white shorts and red socks. There is some “lightening” detailing on the collar, inspired from Roman iconography, which is also continued into name/number fonts for the season.

Ipswich Town – Quick to move on from their recent relegation from Championship, Ipswich Town have launched both their new Home and Away kits from Adidas, both kits from the Adidas template catalogue and the away sees a return to red/navy stripes. A big change with the kits is the sponsor, moving away for black and pink logo to a plain white one that fits with the overall aesthetic of the shirt. It is also worth highlighting that the Children’s versions of the kits will have a local charity as sponsor.

Preston North End – The final kit that I am looking at this first edition of Kit News, is the Nike kit for Preston North End, this template looks like a return to Nike Legend template, most known for its use by several teams in 2002 World Cup, this particular version really reminds me of the England Rugby Union kit worn when they clinch the World Cup in 2003.

Other News:

Aston Villa after a solitary season with local designer Luke1977 (which delivered some amazing kits) have signed a 3 year deal with Kappa
Burnley FC are rumoured to be wearing Umbro next season after leaked photos seen on Twitter
Millwall to have a brown away kit based on their sponsor, chocolate manufacturer Huski
A new badge for FC Nantes
Leaked Arsenal / Adidas kits
New sponsor for PSG

I will follow up with Edition 2 over the coming weeks, let me know your thoughts at Twitter @Kit_Geek or on the comments below.

Premier League – Kits by Fixtures

May 17, 2019Posted in Premier League Kit LogTagged Football, Football Kits, Kit Geek, Kit Log, Kit Variations, Kits, Premier LeagueLeave a comment

Those that have been following me on Twitter and seen previous post know that I keep a log of the kits worn in games with a Kit Grid, an example can be seen here – Premier League, Kit Grid (Match Day 26 to 35)

I also wanted to share you with you the kits worn at each Match Day as a reference point.

Match Day 1 to 3 (10th August to 27th August)

Match Day 4 to Match Day 7 (1st September to 1st October)

Match Day 8 to Match Day 10 (5th October to 29th October)

Match Day 11 to Match Day 14 (3rd November to 2nd December)

Match Day 15 to Match Day 20 (4th December to 30th December)

Match Day 21 to Match Day 24 (1st January to 30th January)

Match Day 25 to Match Day 28 (2nd February to 27th February

Match Day 27 includes

Chelsea v Brighton & Hove Albion played on 3rd April

Match Day 29 to Match Day 32 (2nd March to 31st March

Match Day 30, includes:

Tottenham Hotspur v Crystal Palace on 3rd April
Brighton & Hove Albion v Cardiff City on 16th April
Watford v Southampton on 23rd April
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Arsenal on 24th April
Manchester United v Manchester City on 24th April

Match Day 33 to Match Day 36 (2nd April to 28th April)

Match Day 33 Includes:

Tottenham Hotspur v Brighton & Hove Albion on 23rd April

Match Day 37 and Match Day 38 (3rd May to 12th May)

For some detailed analysis, please check out my previous post – Premier League, End of Season Kit Report

Also, I have recently contributed to this article looking at some of kits worn in 2018/19 Premier League season on Footy.com with Phil Delves which made it all the way to the lofty heights of Talksport – click here …………*FAME AT LAST, KINDA*

Finally check out this stunning graphic from Museum of Jerseys , not only is this documenting all kits worn this season but also all Goalkeeping kits and Officials strips.

Premier League, End of Season Kit Report

May 14, 2019May 14, 2019Posted in Premier League Kit LogTagged England, EPL, Football, Football Kits, Kit Geek, Kit Log, Kit Variations, Kits, Premier League, Soccer2 Comments

Sunday 12th May 2019 saw a remarkable season come to a close, with Manchester City and Liverpool slugging out blows over these final weeks of the season like two heavy weight boxers trading punched in the 12th Round….

Anyway enough of this and to what you are here for, the Kit review of the season.

Kit Stats

760 Kits worn (380 games)
112 variations of kits, which are broken down by the following
Home Kits – 42%, 24 Home kits worn (AFC Bournemouth, Chelsea, Crystal Palace and Leicester all wearing their 2019/20 Home Kit in their last home game) and 23 variations of Home kit
Away Kits – 30%, 19 Away kits worn (Manchester United only team not to wear their designated away kit) and 15 variations of Away kit
3rd / 4th Kits (thanks Fulham) – 28%, 18 3rd/4th Kits worn and 13 variations of 3rd Kit

Overview

Match Day 1 to 19

Match Day 20 to 38

Kit Variations

Everton and Fulham both wore 9 variations of kits this season
Everton – 4 Home Kits, 1 Away and 4 3rd Kits
Fulham – 4 Home Kits, 2 Away, 2 3rd and 1 4th Kit
Manchester United and West Ham United wore 8 variations of kit
Manchester United – 3 Home Kits, 2 Away kits and 3 3rd kits (they also did not wear their designated away kit combination of Pink / Black / Pink)
West Ham United- 4 Home Kits, 1 Away Kit and 3 3rd Kits
Most variation of Home Kit – 4 (Everton, Fulham, West Ham United)
Most variation of Away Kit – 3 (AFC Bournemouth, Burnley, Cardiff City)
Most variation of 3rd Kit – 4 (Everton)
Fulham used a 4th Kit once (which in turn meant they wore 4 kits in the first 5 games)
Watford are the only team to use no variation and only two different kits all season
Leicester City wore their home kit 32 times, only wearing change kits against teams in Blue or Blue / white stripes – the least unnecessary changes

Kit Log

Below is a graphic looking at who what against whom, this is something that I will be looking at in more detail over the coming days, so watch this space.

As in my previous post about The Championship – The Championship, End of Season Kit Report I mentioned my favourite kit match up of the season, for me this was a tough call this season but one of my favourite kits to take the field was Chelsea’s home shirt and when they played Crystal Palace at home, palace wore blue socks with their away to produce for a stunning kit mash up.

As mentioned, there will be additional posts coming up over the coming days but please let me know your thoughts, favourite kits and comments about 2018/19 Premier League Season by using the comments field below or via Twitter – @Kit_geek

The Championship, End of Season Kit Report

May 9, 2019May 9, 2019Posted in EFLTagged Championship, EFL, Football, Football Kits, Kit Geek, Kit Log, Kit Variations, Kits2 Comments

On Sunday 5th May The Championship League season came to an end, we do still have five games left with the playoffs but this feels like a good time to have a review of the kits worn through out the season and look at some of the stats behind the kits worn.

Kit Stats

1102 Kits worn
107 variations of kits
Home Kits – 45%, 25 Full Home kits worn, 23 variations of Home kit – (Stoke used 2019/20 Home kit in final League game)
Away Kits – 39%, 24 Full Away kits worn, 18 variations of Away kit
3rd Kits – 16%, 15 Full 3rd kits worn, 2 variations of 3rd kit (Aston Villa and Leeds United)

Overview

Match 1 to Match 16

Match 17 to Match 31

Match 32 to Match 46

Due to the unfortunate circumstances surrounding Bolton Wanderers at the end of this season, the fixture against Brentford was not played, leaving those two teams with only 45 appearances in the League.

Kit Variations

Aston Villa wore 9 variations of kit, 5 different home combinations and 2 variations of both Away and 3rd Kits.
Bolton Wanderers wore 7 variations of kit, 2 home variations, 4 Away and just the one 3rd kit
Most variations of Home Kit – Aston Villa, 5 variations
Most variations of Away Kit – Bolton Wanderers & Reading, 4 variations
Most variations of 3rd Kit – Aston Villa & Leeds United, 2 variations
9 Clubs only had Home and Away kits
Wigan Athletic only wore two variations of kit all season, their Home and Away
5 Clubs did not use any variation of kit available to them – Bristol City, Norwich City, Preston North End, Rotherham United and Wigan Athletic.

I wrote in a previous post – EFL, Championship – Kit Variations about my five favourite kits and that has not changed since that post, so my favourite kit match up of the season was Blackburn Rovers v Bristol City.

I will continue to add to the Kit Log throughout the Playoff and will update via Twitter – @Kit_Geek but please let me know your thoughts and what your favourite kits seen the English 2nd Tier via the comments below or Twitter.

Premier League, Kit Grid (Match Day 26 to 35)

Apr 25, 2019Posted in Premier League Kit LogTagged EPL, Football, Football Kits, Kit Log, Kit Variations, Kits1 Comment

The end of the Premier League season is fast approaching with only 3 rounds of games left to be played.

This felt like a good time to review the Kit Grid that looks at what was worn by who against who.

To review older updates and see how this works please see my previous posts about this:

Premier League – Kit Grid, Match Day 13

Premier League – Kit Grid catch up (MD 14 to 17)

Premier League – Kit Grid (Match Day 18 – 25)

Match Day 26 – 9th February to 11th February

Match Day 27 – 22nd February to 24th February

Match Day 28 – 26th February to 27th February

Match Day 29 – 2nd March to 3rd March

Match Day 30 – 9th March to 10th March

Match Day 31 – 16th March to 17th March

Match Day 32 – 30th March to 1st April

Match Day 33 – 2nd April to 8th April

Match Day 34 – 12th April to 15th April

Match Day 35 – 20th April to 22nd April

Games played on 23rd April and 24th April – From Match Day 31 and Match Day 33

At the end of season, I will start to break down some of the stats behind the kits worn by the Team in the Premier League this season.

Please let me know you thoughts via the comments below or via Twitter @Kit_Geek

EFL, Championship – Kit Variations

Feb 15, 2019Posted in EFLTagged EFL, Football, Football Kits, Kit Geek, Kit Log, Kit Variations, KitsLeave a comment

Along with the Kit Variations worn by teams in the Premier League (click here) and The Champions League (click here), I have also been tracking the kits worn in Championship through 2018/19.

We are two thirds of the way through this season, so I thought it would be a good time to have a look and review what variations have been worn by the teams competing in England’s 2nd Tier.

Kit Stats (as of 15th February 2019)

760 kits worn in total
95 variations of kit
Home Kits – 43% (25% First Choice Kit, 18% Variation)
Away Kits – 42% (25% First Choice Kit, 17% Variation)
3rd Kits – 15% (14% First Choice Kit, 1% Variation)

Championship, Kit Variations

Aston Villa have worn the most variations in the league, this includes four different uses of their home kit this season, two of their away and the debut of their third kit at Brentford on 13th February, however worn with away shorts and a alternative claret socks, so we are yet to see the full 3rd kit this season. Their kits are a set that do complement each other, which is why we are seeing so many variations on show here.

Middlesbrough are one of three teams that have used six variations of kit this season, with three versions of their away kit, they also have two versions of white socks in their kit range, with blue trim for the away and silver trim in the third.

There is also couple of examples of alternative home kits on show, all in one colour with Ipswich Town (I know white sleeves buts lets go with it), Middlesbrough, Millwall (above) and Nottingham Forest (below)…. is there a chance we will see Aston Villa turn out in 5th all claret Home kit???

Queen’s Park Rangers are one of nine teams in the Championship that only have two registered kits this season, however that has not stopped the West Londoners racking up six variations of kit seen this season, with both home and away kits seen in three different variations.

Reading have used their away kit in all possible combinations with black / grey shorts and socks, giving them four variations of kit used this season.

We have also seen eight teams so far this season, only use their registered kits with no variations. Bristol City, Derby County, Norwich City, Preston North End, Rotherham United and West Bromwich Albion have only used three kits this season, whilst Stoke City and Wigan Athletic have only used two kits this season.

My Favourite 5 kits

Below are my favourite five kits seen in The Championship this season (in alphabetical order).

1, Blackburn Rovers – Home Kit / 2, Bristol City – 3rd Kit

Why use two images when these two kits are in one….!

Two fantastic kits on show, Blackburn Rover’s being the only home kit on my list and probably my favourite Umbro kit of the season across all leagues.

Bristol City’s 3rd kit in their unique colour combination, just works so well for them.

3, Leeds United – 3rd Kit

Simple, effect and elegant…. this classy kit from Kappa is just what you want from a classic Leeds United change strip. The bands on the sleeves and top of the socks one of the elements of this kit that just make it stand out. This is my favourite kit in the Championship this season.

4, Queen’s Park Rangers – Away

Another Away kit that just works for me and one we have seen in three different variations (Pink-Navy-Navy and All Pink) but the kit in its original form of Pink-Navy-Pink, really works for me, the two tone pink hoops work really well as I enjoy seeing QPR wearing hoops in all kits, it does not seem right when they do not.

5, West Bromwich Albion – 3rd Kit

Another colour combination that is part of a club’s history, this Green and Yellow kit with its wider stripes (another nod to West Brom’s past) is another kit that just works all round for me. Interestingly labeled as a “Change” kit on the club shop with their current black / blue kit being called the “Away” kit, this has made more appearances as alternative from the home kit being worn 12 time so far this season.

Well there we have it, a review so far of what has been worn in The Championship this season, please as always let me know you thoughts and what are your kit highlights in England’s 2nd Tier by using the comments fields below or via Twitter – @Kit_Geek