Gavin Hope

England and some “Sky Blue” thinking….

Jun 11, 2018Sep 12, 2023Posted in GeneralTagged England, Football, Football Kits, Kit Geek, Kits, Sky Blue, umbro7 Comments

When talking about kit perfection, for me there are a few things that spring to mind, Manchester United’s “Newton Heath” 3rd kit from Umbro, 1984 French Adidas kits and England wearing Sky Blue to name a few. So I thought I would take a little bit of time to look back at those wonderful kits worn by the Three Lions.

England have only ever had five Sky Blue kits, all produced by Umbro and only worn a full sky blue kit only 4 times, with two of these kits not making an appearance with the Senior team.

Kit 1, 1970

England wore three different kits in the 1970 World Cup and their group game against Czechoslovakia saw them in a Sky Blue kit for the first time.

Umbro reproduced this kit in the early 2000’s (yes, I brought and still have one) but the reproduced version included a number 6 on the back but in white, not the red numbering used with the actual kit.

Kit 2, 1986

The second Sky Blue kit was again produced as part of a kit package for a World Cup staged in Mexico, this time in 1986. However the full kit was never worn but we did get to see the shorts and socks in the Quarter-Final match up against Argentina where arguably the full kit could have been worn.

In fact the kit would not have been out of place if used in the last 16 game against the red and white stripes of Paraguay.

Kit 3, 1988

The third kit seen, was the 1988 3rd kit from Umbro. At this time all three England kits had the same template. This is my favourite of the all the Sky Blue kits that England have but unfortunately did not see action with the Senior Team, it did make an appearance for the U21’s though.

However the Senior Team did pose for this wonderful team photo…. which I also use as my cover picture on my twitter account (@kit_geek)

Kit 4, 1990

One of the most famous Sky Blue England kits and only the 2nd time that England wore a full Sky Blue kit in a Senior game, this kit made its one and only appearance in the 1991 in the Euro 92 qualifier against Turkey.

This kit was also part of the Italia 90 World Cup kit line up and was famously worn in the video of “World in Motion” by New Order front man Bernard Sumner.

The shirts design and pattern also formed part of the England training kits at the time and was often seen here with just a large central Umbro logo within the shirt.

Kit 5, 1992

Arguably the most famous of the Sky Blue England kits and I would say in many people’s eyes one of the most popular of all England kits not just the blue ones.

This kit also is the only Sky Blue kit to be worn more than once, making two appearances in 1992 against Czechoslovakia and Spain. The shirt, including it’s “Three Lions” is what makes this such an iconic kit.

Although Sky Blue has featured on several other home and away kits over the past years, I hope that the colour will be revisited as main kit colour in future, unlikely I know given that the “rules” state that second (or third) choice kits should be a contrast to the first choice kit and not sure that Sky Blue and White fit that model however as a simple kit geek I can hope…..!!

Sites I used to research this article:

Historical Football Kits

England Football Online

England Kits at World Cups

May 25, 2018May 25, 2018Posted in World Cup Kit LogTagged England, Football, Football Kits, world cup2 Comments

2018 World Cup fever is just starting to ramp up, I though the time would be right to look at some of the kits worn in previous tournaments by the Three Lions.

England’s first World Cup was in 1950 hosted by Brazil and where they played only the three group games with the second of these games being famous for a defeat from the USA, wearing second kit at the time which was royal blue (the first of only two times that England would wear blue shirts at World Cups.

In 1954 England only played group games with very little change to kit, the only variation from the normal “home” kit was in the third game of 1954 where red socks were used instead of regular blue socks and by the team the 1958 tournament came around, red socks were part of the standard kit, however in 1958 a play off game against the Soviet Union was needed to determine who would progress from the group.

In 1962 was the same shirt as 1958 but for the first time paired with navy blue shorts and white socks and as an alternative all white. This World Cup was also the first time that England wore red, with an all red strip worn in the third group game against Bulgaria.

1966…… well the pinnacle of performance at World Cups on the pitch and many argue the pinnacle of kits too. The iconic kit that was also used in 1970, England wore their “home” kit in all games (with all white combo in Quarter Final match up with Argentina) and of course famously wore their Red Shirts, White Shorts, Red Socks combination in the final against West Germany.

Moving on to 1970, again the holders wore the same kit as the previous tournament but this one had a subtle difference with an Airtex (little holes) in the kit to help the temperature and humidity at Mexico, there was also a third kit used (for the one and only time as a full kit) which was Sky Blue.

England failed to qualify for next to tournaments, so the next time they would appear was in 1982, the kit landscape was starting to change at this point (see my review of the kits worn in Spain 82 here. Admiral were now the supplier and produced one of the all time classic kits in terms of design for the tournament. With both red and white shirts worn, this really proved a hit with fans and one that will often be seen in crowds now at England games.

1986 saw a quick return for the Three Lions to Mexico, again a special kit was created by Umbro which was designed to combat the conditions. England only used their “home” shirts here, however in the quarter final against Argentina, this shirt was combined with the third kit’s sky blue shorts and socks for a unique combination never to be seen again. (for a full Mexico 86 review click here.

In Italia 90, again another tournament fondly remembered by England fans, they only used their home kit (in 7 games, the most games played by England in a single tournament), having registered both away and third kits for the tournament. (Kit Log – World Cup, USA 1994)

After missing USA 94, England next qualified for France 98, with classic mid 90s design from Umbro, wearing both home and away kits within their group and then using an all white kit in the game against Argentina in the first knock out round, this was the first time England had worn all white at a World Cup since 1970. (Kit Log – World Cup, France 1998)

2002, the first (and so far only) tournament to be co-hosted, Umbro introduced a red stripe down the home one side of the home shirt. The away kit is also worth a mention as it was marketed at the time to be a reversible shirt with a Navy Blue “training / leisure” shirt on the inside for the replica kits, I am going to assume that the player version were missing this feature of the shirt. (Kit Log – World Cup, Korea/Japan 2002)

2006, again saw red play a feature on the home shirt, this time in the form of a cross on the shoulder, the away kit only made one appearance and there was an element of gold in this kit, with gold fonts and numbers used as part of the kit.

2010, saw Umbro produce a kit that brilliant in its simplicity, a change saw the “home” kit become all white for the first time and was the flagship kit for the “Tailored by Umbro” range, the kit was paired with an equally elegant red away kit and although was initially partnered with white shorts but was used as an all red alternative through the tournament.

Finally this review brings us to 2014 tournament in Brazil, one where FIFA introduced single colour kits for all teams (apart from those that stripes, etc…. and Brazil)…. England’s kits for the first time were made by Nike at World Cup tournaments, and their all white home kit had a subtle pinstripe and a royal blue “tick” and badges, this was the only kit worn at the tournament.

For Russia 2018, England are returning to more traditional colours with navy blue shorts for the home and return of a red away kit with white shorts, red socks combination.

Any favourites or thoughts on England’s World Cup kit history?

Premier League Kit Log – Kit Variations

May 15, 2018May 15, 2018Posted in Premier League Kit LogTagged EPL, Football, Football Kits, Premier League1 Comment

When compiling my Kit Log of the 2017/18 Premier League season (check it out here – Premier League Kit Log ) one thing that became clear to me was the amount of variations in the kits that were used, so I started keeping track of the different variations of kits being used by each team.

As mentioned in my previous post, there were 95 variations of kits used in 17/18 Season, this does include those teams that launched their 2018/19 kits (Everton, Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea).

The Teams – Kits are in chronological order of when they first worn

Arsenal to Chelsea

Crystal Palace to Manchester City

Manchester United to Stoke City

Swansea to West Ham United

Looking at this, four teams did not use any variation of their three choices of kit (Two for Watford), these were Leicester City, Liverpool, Manchester City, Swansea and of these only Leicester City and Swansea wore the three kits, as Liverpool and Manchester City both wore 2018/19 Home kits in their final home games.

The teams with the most variation are Manchester United and West Ham United, each turning out in SEVEN variations of kits (Both having 3 Home, 2 Away and 2 3rd Kit variations). Everton also used seven variations of kits but this does include the 2018/19 Home kit

Brighton and Hove Albion initially launched their yellow away kit with black socks and for its first two appearances wore this combination but the kit was used a further 14 times with yellow socks, giving us the largest volume of kit variation used. Brighton also used alternative kits the most times, 17 of the 19 away games, although their 3rd kit was only used once against Chelsea. The two away games that they did not change, Watford in August and Liverpool on the final day of the season, 260 days between these two games.

Tottenham Hotspur registered a 3rd Kit (Purple camouflage) however this did not make an appearance in the League, so was the only shirt of the 59 registered with the Premier League that was not used, Burnley wore their 3rd shirt with their home shorts and socks in Arsene Wenger’s final game at The Emirates Stadium, so this full 3rd kit was not worn (it was the away kit from 2016/17 season).

Watford often got criticised for the amount of time they wore their away kit (9 times), when you look at other clubs is not much different in terms of usage however the question of whether they should of worn it in some of the games is up for debate but we live in times where clubs need to make their money, so I do not begrudge them of this, however if this was a more pleasing kit to eye then it might of helped.

Anything jump out to you in the way teams used their kits, let me know?

Premier League Kit Log – END OF SEASON UPDATE

May 14, 2018May 15, 2018Posted in Premier League Kit LogTagged EPL, Football, Premier League2 Comments

We’ve made it, we are there…. 380 games completed, 20 teams with 59 kits between them and 95 variations of those kits worn a total of 760 times (but more about that later)….

On Sunday 13th May saw the 2018/19 season come to a close, with Manchester City breaking all kinds of records on the pitch but what we are interested in looking at here is who wore what when, so Ladies and Gents, I give the Premier League 2018/19 completed Kit Log…. enjoy!

To make it easier to view, I have broken it down into four sections, 10 teams in alphabetical order in each section and looking at Matches 1-19 and Matches 20-38.

Arsenal to Liverpool, Matches 1 to 19

Arsenal to Liverpool, Matches 20 to 38

Manchester City to West Ham United, Matches 1 to 19

Manchester City to West Ham United, Matches 20 to 38

Looking at some of the kit stats:

Home Kits – 552 used, 73% (65% full home kit, 8% home kit variations)

Away Kits – 134 used, 17% (14% full away kit, 3% away kit variations)

3rd Kits – 74 used,10% (8% full 3rd kits, 2% 3rd kit variations)

I will be following this post up in the next days looking at the variations of kits used in more detail.

Oh and my favourite kit of season, the variation used by Southampton at Newcastle United, red shorts, red socks worn but also changed the back of the shirt to make it solid red as well to avoid a clash, a real one for us Kit Geeks out there…..

Arsenal – The Wenger Years

May 9, 2018Posted in GeneralTagged Arsenal, Nike, Puma, WengerLeave a comment

The curtain on Arsene Wenger’s time as Arsenal Manager is about to come down, I thought it would be a good opportunity to look back at the kits worn through out his reign in a little more detail in my own little way.

The Kit Stats

Manufacturers – 2 (Nike and Puma)

Home Kits – 15 (11 by Nike and 4 by Puma)

Away Kits – 18 (14 by Nike and 4 by Puma)

3rd Kits – 9 (5 by Nike and 4 by Puma) – this does not include 3rd shirts that were previously used as away kits.

One thing to note hear is the kit policy that Arsenal, unlike many other clubs in 1990’s and through the majority of the 2000’s had a longer life cycle for their kits, with Home kits often being used for two seasons and away kits being used as 3rd kits in following seasons, giving them also a two year life cycle.

This policy meant that during Mr Wenger’s 22 season reign, there was a total of 42 kits, where there could have been 66 used if Home, Away and 3rd kits were changed every season.

The Sponsors

1996 to 1999 – JVC

1999 to 2002 – SEGA (as Dreamcast for Home Kits, 3rd Kits and SEGA Away Kits)

2002 to 2006 – 02

2006 to 2018 – Emirates Airlines (as Fly Emirates)

Some of my Highlights

There are several kits that spring to mind over these 22 years but the special kit used for the final season played at Highbury (2005 – 06) was a real stand out, possibly as it was so different. Based on the kit worn at the club’s first season at the ground in 1913, however the was some question over whether this was the actual colour worn at that time but the 2005 version proved to be a big hit with fans and kit lovers across the Globe. The “Redcurrent” colour also proved a popular addition to the Arsenal kit palette, featuring in one form or another in home, away and 3rd kits over the next couple of seasons.

Other kits that for me are worth “honorable” mentions.

Away and 3rd Kits from 2007/08, these were two kits that had the “Redcurrent” influence and again was something different from the kits and the colours used in previous years for the club.

2012/13 Away kit, which was also registered as 3rd kit in 13/14 but I cannot find any evidence of it being used, this kit introduced purple into the Arsenal colour palette and was reminiscent in design to 2007/08 with the use of hoops (or horizontal stripes depending on your preference). Again something different and something that really stands out from the normal in terms of design.

Any kit highlights from you over the Arsene Wenger years, is there one that holds special memories, the Invincibles Season, the Champions League Final of 2006, let me know?

Kit Log – World Cup, Korea/Japan 2002

May 3, 2018May 3, 2018Posted in World Cup Kit LogTagged 2002, Football, Football Kits, Italy, Japan, Korea, Soccer, world cup1 Comment

For the first time in the competition’s history the World Cup moved away from Europe and Americas and was held on Asian Continent, the 17th Tournament hosted by both South Korea and Japan, which also was another first with a jointly hosted competition. Following from France 98, the format remained the same and gave us 32 teams competing in 8 groups of 4 teams, followed by knock out stage of the competition, totaling in 64 games.

In terms of the kits seen in the tournament, there was a real identity per manufacture, I do not want to use the word template as there were some subtle differences with the shirts that made them a little for unique than a standard template, in particular with those Nations that had Nike kits in 2002.

Looking at the manufacturers, again as in France 98 there was 12 manufacturers on show at the tournament, Adidas leading the way once more but there was an increase in the number of teams wearing the three stripes, with 10 from the 6 from four years earlier. Nike had 8 representative and Puma 4, so the “Big 3” making up nearly 70% of the nations appearing. There were some notable manufacturers in the rest of the kit suppliers, Kappa, Hummel, Le Coq Sportif, Joma, Umbro (who supplied England and Ireland) and Uhlsport. There were some lesser known names in Marathon, L.Sporto and Athletica, supplying some of the Central and South American Nations.

It was certainly a bright World Cup in terms of colours, Nike’s Nigeria and South Korea kits were reminiscent of highlighter pens, in particular the Nigerian Kit which in the first game was paired with white numbers and names, which proved not to be that visible to watching millions and was quickly replaced by black alternatives for the rest of the competition.

Almost all Nations had a splash of colour or detailing on their shirts, one notable exception to this was Italy, whose Kappa kit stood out as a classic Italian Shirt, a lighter shade of blue used, a balance in the first and second choice kits topped off with a more tighter cut than other kits used – certainly not a kit with those with kind of build that I have.

Another kit to call out and look into a little more detail is Cameroon’s kit, here they (or Puma) looked to do something different and never seen before, to combat the heat and humidity they proposed a sleeveless kit and in fact used a sleeveless version of the kit they wore prior to the tournament, however FIFA did not allow this kit to be worn in the actual tournament and black sleeves were added to both the first and second choice shirts. Cameroon would try to break kit boundaries two years later with an all in one kit.

Eventual winners Brazil, wore their traditional yellow shirt with three different combinations of shorts and socks, the classic blue shorts and white socks against Chine and Turkey (twice, group and semi-final), white shorts and blue socks against Costa Rica and blue shorts and blue socks in the final against Germany, a rarely seen variation of the kit which will go down in history as it was the one worn to lift the trophy for a record 5th time.

Feel free to share your kit highlights from 2002 World Cup.

Kit Log – World Cup, France 1998

Apr 5, 2018Posted in World Cup Kit LogTagged 1998, Football, Football Kits, France, world cup3 Comments

The 16th World Cup headed back to Europe and returned to France after they held the 1938 tournament. This was an expanded competition from the previous three World Cups and was the first to follow the format that is now well established which meant an increase in qualifying teams from 24 to 32 teams, resulting in eight groups of four teams, with the top two teams moving on to the knock out stages, giving us a total of 64 games that were played between 10th June 1998 and 12th July 1998.

Looking at the kits, there was again a leap from USA 94 in terms of style and colours on show from each country. Several countries added detail to their kits that had not been seen before on, Mexico, Japan, South Africa are all countries that spring to mind with added flashes of colour and detail.

Looking at the manufacturers, there was greater mix of supplier in this competition with 12 different manufacturers taking to the field, leading the way were Adidas wore kitted out 6 teams, a huge reduction from Italia 90 where they supplied 15 out 24 teams and new comers to International football, Nike.

The US brand’s poster boys for the tournament where holders Brazil. Kit manufacturers using football to promote their products was about to take off….. literally, remember the advert at the Airport, if you do you’ll have that song now in your head for rest of the day.

Overall there was a real blend of template style kits, Adidas with Romania, Yugoslavia, Spain and Puma with Cameroon, Austria, Bulgaria and bespoke designs with Japan, Mexico, Denmark.

A special mention here has to go to Kappa for France 98, they supplied two teams, South Africa and Jamaica, the kits they produced where both unique and stood out from the rest, especially the Reggae Boys, a magnificent kit and one that I cannot do any justice with my simply illustrations.

Another “highlight” worth mentioning is something that Romania did, with most of the team bleaching their hair blonde, whether it was as part of a team unity exercise or as the late great Jimmy Hill surmised maybe would improve picking out a team-mate at quick glance (lets got with that, then it can be kit related, kinda).

England returned to the traditional red away kit for the tournament, it only made one appearance against Colombia but after the controversial “Indigo” away kit of Euro 96 (which I still believe to be a classic England kit) was also the kit that saw one David Beckham score his first goal for England. In the knock-out round against Argentina, England wore an all white kit, which was a rare sight for England in the 1990’s but one that will be remembered due to one of the goals of tournament being scored by Michael Owen.

Eventual winners France, returned to a classic style and one that has been repeated several times over the years since they won 1984 European Championships in their iconic design. It is a classic design that is synonymous with the French team and one that I am sure we will see again in the future.

Any kit highlights from France 1998, let me know?

Remembering Ray Wilkins

Apr 4, 2018Nov 29, 2021Posted in General, Kit HistoryTagged England, Football, Football Kits, RIP, WilkinsLeave a comment

I was saddened to hear about the passing of Ray Wilkins, he was one of my first footballing heroes, as a child in the 80s he was one of the first players I knew that played abroad, the memories of Mexico 86 World Cup, seeing repeats of that Cup Final goal and career that went on and on both off and on the pitch.

I always enjoyed listening to him talk about the game and finding him insightful and felt like I learnt something from him.

So I want to pay my respects in the only way I know how to, in a selection of the kits he wore through-out his career, Rest in Peace “Butch”

England, Kit Review

Mar 26, 2018Mar 26, 2018Posted in GeneralTagged England, Football, NikeLeave a comment

I always like to see a new kit in action before making any decisions about my thoughts on it, the promotional pictures and marketing details are for me only a taster of a team or this case Country’s new wears, its when we see it action that we can see the design in all its glory.

So on Friday 23rd March, England’s Senior Men’s team kicked off in the next range of “Home” / “First” kits ready for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

My first impression from its initial launch was that this a return to a more conservative approach to kit design, the previous kits which for full disclosure I was a fan of and thought was a great effort at something different for England. However this is more of a classic “England” design, seeing a return to the blue shorts, the first time since 2013/4 kit (the first Nike design had England had). These short are one of the aspects of this kit which I really like, the detail in the shorts with the “Tonal” England crest and Nike tick, give a nice balance to shorts and tied in with the red numbering really works for me.

The return of red numbering is one of the key elements here that I really like within this kit, probably one the designers wont thank me for but red numbering is one of the elements of an England Kit that I do not think should change. This is the first time this has been seen since the 2012 Umbro kit (the all white version with only Red design elements included) and the first time with the traditional blue shorts since Umbro’s 1999/2001 kit – I had to check and double check that, as it did not seem to be that long ago!

Other aspects of the shirt which work for are the subtle flashes of colour within the shirt, the red collar line around the neck and the Blue within the Crest also seems to the badge “pop” more than other shirt of recent years. The only thing that does not work for me is the placement of the number on the front of the shirt, I feel a more central position would balance the shirt, the number seems too low in its current spot.

Overall, for me this is a good look for England, a return to a more traditional look but with some nice nods to the past, as an England fan let’s hope that this kit is linked to more happier time on the pitch.

What are you thoughts on this kit?

Kit Log – World Cup, USA 1994

Mar 23, 2018Posted in World Cup Kit LogTagged Adidas, Brazil, Football, Football Kits, Kit Geek, Kits, Soccer, USA, world cup2 Comments

With an explosion and colour and design The 1994 World Cup rolled into new territory and into a new market when 15th Tournament headed off to the USA!

For the third time the tournament format remained unchanged which meant between 17th June and 17th July 1994 there were 24 teams taking part, split into six groups of four teams, followed by the knock out stage of competition to give us a total of 52 games to look at.

In terms of kits there was a leap from the 1990 World Cup in terms of designs, almost all kits had some form of added splashes of colour (for example, the Adidas three strips in Sweden, Bulgaria, Romania), design element (seen with Nigeria, South Korea, Morocco) and even the plain kits had elements of water mark contained within the shirt (think Netherlands, Italy, Brazil).

In terms of manufacturers, Adidas again led the way supplying the most teams playing but their number declined from 1990 World Cup where they had 15 countries in their ranks, this time round they had 10 countries. Umbro appear next on the list supplying 4 countries, all from Central and South America, something of surprise with a brand that is historically linked with the Home Nations. Other brands such as Lotto, Diadora, Reebok, Mitre also graced the field but there were significant absentees from the manufacturers that we see today in Puma and Nike, who where to enter the market in big way after this tournament.

We need to talk about Adidas, wow…. in my opinion some of their greatest designs appeared at USA 94 and none more-so than the hosts themselves. USA’s classic “Stars” and “Stripes” kits, which I think should be discussed as a pair, as they were seamlessly interchangeable with their respective shorts and socks, any combination which they took to the pitch just worked beautifully, in their 4 games they used 3 different combinations of kit, a true World Cup classic kit up there with Denmark in 1986 – click here for that tournament’s kit log

Other classic kits seen from Adidas were Nigeria’s second choice kit, a unique design and something that is now the inspiration behind their 2018 World Cup Kit, one of the best we have seen so far this year. Ireland also had unique designs from Adidas and I believe these kits, particularly the away kit being underrated as one of the best away kits Ireland have had, they were also short lived designs with Ireland moving across to Umbro shortly after the conclusion of the World Cup.

Adidas also introduced some template designs which at the time I did not like but have grown on me over the years, particularly Sweden’s away kit and Argentina’s away kit, although when I think of that kit I have an image of Maradona screaming into the camera after scoring (the less said about that the better).

There was some unusual sights in both Quarter-Finals and Semi-Finals, where there games with both teams wearing the “away” strips, Netherlands v Brazil, Romania v Sweden and Sweden v Brazil, a common theme of yellow there but after looking into the reason behind this, there is no clear reason why this choice was made, if anyone has any thoughts or ideas about this please let me know.

Eventual winners, Umbro wearing Brazil wore they home kit 4 times including the final and away 3 times, where they combined the away shirt and socks with home shorts to give us a smart all blue (although slightly different shades blue, ahead of their time?) variation.