Category: EFL

The Heat Press ’25: Kit Round up, 1st July

Posted in EFL, General, Kit News, Premier League Kit Log, The Heat PressTagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 5 Comments

The Heat Press returns for issue number 2 of it’s summer series looking at the kits released in English Football over the last few days, with 15 new kits launched since Issue 1.

Issue 1 can be found here

A reminder that I will take a regular look at the Kits launched across the English Leagues and beyond, the discussion points and anything else Kit Related that comes up over these pre-season weeks.

I will only share those kits that have been officially released, as there are plenty of leaks that do the rounds but we will keep those official launches.

You will also find my Kit Overview illustrations for each of the four divisions which will used to document the Kit Usage of all 92 English Clubs.

Premier League – 14 / 60 Kits

New Kits:

Newcastle United, 3rd: The Adidas Trefoil logos are back for their 3rd Kits this season, and this is Newcastle’s first one, a kit that looks back to another Adidas kit from the past, with the use of blue with orange trim as with 1997 Away Kit. An interesting collar design, we wait to see what this looks like in action.

Brighton & Hove Albion, Home: Interesting use of stripes with the new Brighton Kit, with a change between the white and blue either side of the sponsor band, this kit appears to be paired with blue socks as first choice this season and also contains “Hyperturk” accent details, from the popular change kit used over 2 seasons between 2021 and 2023.

It also appears that The Seagulls will be keeping their now tradition of using the previous season’s away kit as the coming season’s 3rd Kit, the all yellow kit will be their 3rd kit this season!

Championship – 9 / 72 Kits

New Kits:

Stoke City, Away: Return to one of their looks in the 90s, this striking purple kit will be the Away kit for Stoke City this season, the yellow detailing really works well with this kit and one I am looking forward to seeing in action.

Birmingham City, Home: It’s 150th Anniversary kit for Birmingham City this season, the shirt which is the same Nike Template as the England Home Kit will be blue with gold detailing, including a special gold club crest.

Oxford United, Home: The tagline for Oxford’s new kit is “Inspired by heritage” and this is certainly a classic looking shirt for the coming season.

League One – 21 / 72 Kits

New Kits:

AFC Wimbledon, Home, Away, 3rd: Lotto returns to English football with AFC Wimbledon launched all three shirts on the same day, delivering a nice looking Home shirt, with a simple but classic feel but some nice detailing in the shirt.

An interesting colour choice for AFC Wimbledon away kit, fluro green has been used in the past as alternative colour for The Dons but not paired with black, it’ll be interesting to see this kit in action.

The final offering is possible the best of the lot with the yellow 3rd Kit, the side panels of this shirt carrying the “lotto” logo is simply wonderful.

Huddersfield Town, Home: Another team that have change suppliers over the summer, Castore have delivered a nice looking kit, this kit celebrates 100 years since their 3 League Championship titles won in a row.

Exeter City, Home: Exeter City continue their partnership with Adidas, their last home kit was used for two seasons, it is yet to confirmed if this will also be used for two season. Nice take on the stripes with this shirt.

Barnsley, Home: Oxen are a Kit Manufacturer that come up with interesting design concepts, at first glance this appears to be a simple design, but a closer look you will see details in the shirt of Yorkshire rose, as well as side panels that take inspiration from some 90s shirt elements, also the Yorkshire rose detail is part of the short design!

Leyton Orient, Home: Following last season’s home kit was always going to be a tough ask, this is a solid effort, there are some side panel checked details within the shirt that makes it stand out from just a generic template.

League Two – 21 / 72 Kits

New Kits:

MK Dons, Home: Another club that has joined the Reebok return to English football, a little more gold detailing than we have seen over recent years, a solid start in terms of design.

Harrogate Town, Away: Plenty of neon on show for Harrogate Town on the road this coming season, with a “highlighter” blue away kit, trimmed with neon pink.

Tranmere Rovers, Home: The new kit from Mills see’s a return of the classic blue and green detailing with the Tranmere Rovers Home Kit, the shirt contains a blue pinstripe.

This week’s Kit News…..

Have you ever heard of kit design being launched, then pulled for design reasons, well this has happened with Ebbsfleet United’s new away kit from Admiral.. the statement on the club’s website..

“The design change is due to the impending release of a similar kit in the global market which was only brought to our attention after our initial, well-received kit launch, and it was suggested the design be altered”

Looks like there is more to come here, especially a kit coming soon with the Gulf Racing Colour Scheme.

Mansfield Town have announced their new kit partnership with Errea, described as a multi-year partnership, Mansfield become the 3rd club to move away from Castore for the upcoming season.

We got our first official look at the Adidas Trefoil Goalkeeper template for 2025 / 26 season, with Newcastle United launching their 3rd Kit this week with a yellow version of the template.

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below or over at my Socials…

X – @kit_geek or Bluesky – Kit Geek

If you liked this, then check out the below posts that have recently been published on the site…

Premier League – Kit Observations

Premier League – One Kit Wonders

Premier League – End of Season Review

Premier League – Top Trumps

The Heat Press ’25: Kit Round Up, 27th June

Posted in EFL, General, Kit History, Kit News, The Heat PressTagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 8 Comments

It’s back…..!

As we approach the end of June, teams are now starting to kick off their pre-season training and of the course the Club World Cup is still in full swing with the completion of the group stages, I thought it was time to dust off The Heat Press and take a look at some new kits….

To pass these summer weeks I will take a weekly (or maybe more) look at the Kits launched across the English Leagues and beyond, the discussion points and anything else Kit Related that comes up. I will only share those kits that have been officially released, as there are plenty of leaks that do the rounds but we will keep this official.

You will also find my Kit Overview illustrations for each of the four divisions.

Premier League – 11 / 60 Kits

New Kits:

Everton, Home: The first kit to be worn at The Hill Dickinson Stadium, which takes inspiration from the new stadium’s location on the banks of the River Mersey and shows a ‘wave’ that flows throughout the shirt. Blue socks will also return as first choice colour, the first time since 2014 / 15 season, although they were navy blue, this is time royal blue socks will be used in the kit’s default look since 2012 / 13.

Tottenham Hotspur, Away: Tottenham Hotspur have followed up their Home Kit, by launching their Away Kit, this is all black kit with a subtle checked pattern within both the shirt and shorts, the kit is being labeled as “In Darkness we Dare” which is a spin on the club’s motto “To do is to dare”. The first team in Premier League to launch Home and Away kits.

Wolverhampton Wanderers, Home: The second season with Sudu as manufacturer and it’s another classic looking Wolves kit, simple but effective, I like that they keep the Home Kits simple and it works well in my eyes, nice collar too and detailing within the shirt.

Championship – 6 / 72 Kits

New Kits:

Preston North End, Away: A fairly standard offering from Castore in terms of the Home Kit, some nice details within the shirt which take inspiration from Deepdale. The talking point here is the sponsor, Spud Bros… but from my point of view, they are local company supporting their local team, so fair play to them, much more appealing than a betting company, so a win from this Kit Geek.

Millwall, Home: If you follow me on Social Media you will know that I’m a Millwall fan, so been waiting for this one, last season’s Home Kit was wonderful, one of my favourite Millwall kits of all time, so any kit this season will have some big shoes to fill in my eyes…! And they have delivered, a simple and clean look, something classical about this shirt with it’s central placement of logos, one happy Millwall Fan here.

West Bromwich Albion, Home: Macron 2nd season with WBA, an interesting collar and some additional detailing in the socks, which also contain a single stripe.

League One – 14 / 72 Kits

New Kits:

Bradford City, Away: Bradford City launched their new Away Kit at the end of last week, and its light, almost metallic all blue look on the road this season, paired with a Pink 3rd Kit which was released at the end of last season! This kit also carries “UK City of Culture” detail on this shirt.

Northampton Town, 3rd Kit: Its the 3rd Kit first up for Northampton Town and another almost metallic futuristic look in League One, with aqua green, gray kit and detailed with neon yellow… a nice look, that works well for me.

Cardiff City, Home: New Balance remains as Cardiff’s kit manufacturer for a 4th season, and this season will see the club play in pinstripes with white shorts and blue socks!

League Two – 18 / 72 Kits

New Kits:

Shrewsbury Town, Home: A nice looking kit, based on one worn by the club between 1983 and 1985. Some nice details within the shirt and the red trim is something that I particularly like and works for me. Oxen delivering some nice designs again.

Cambridge United, Away: Umbro and Cambridge United are a partnership that have consistently delivered and this season looks to continue that trend, with new Home Kit launched last week and the Away proving to be a classic look that will work perfectly as a change kit!

Cambridge United, 3rd: The full kit set is completed for Cambridge, with this black kit which is paired with gold shorts and black socks, a nice balance from Home Kit.

This week’s Kit News…..

Chelsea wore their 2025 / 26 Away Kit for the first time in the Club World Cup Group Game against ES Tunis. The Kit was worn with alternative socks, rather than the Green default socks.

It appears the Brentford x Joma deal is confirmed, with the launch of their training range this week.

Barnsley have confirmed they are moving away from Puma have signed a new Kit deal with Oxen, who now will supply at least three teams in League One this season and four in total in EFL.

Carlisle United who were relegated into National League last season, launched their new home kit and its another look to the past with Umbro, this time taking one of their classic Away kit looks but giving it a home kit spin as they look to bounce back to League Two this season!

You might wonder why the announcements of Liverpool’s new signings has been using last season’s Nike Kits, the new deal with Adidas does not start until 1st August, so all activity including pre-season friendlies in July will be in Nike playing and training kits.

Manchester City used their alternative shorts and socks with their Home Kit in the final World Club Cup Group game against Juventus, the navy shorts and socks give a really interesting look that I think works well with the navy details within the shirt, a look I hope we see in Premier League this season!

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below or over at my Socials…

X – @kit_geek or Bluesky – Kit Geek

If you liked this, then check out the below posts that have recently been published on the site…

Premier League – Kit Observations

Premier League – One Kit Wonders

Premier League – End of Season Review

Premier League – Top Trumps

Kit Manufacturers Breakdown: 2024/25

Posted in EFL, General, Kit History, Kit News, Premier League Kit LogTagged , , , , , , , , , , 3 Comments

UPDATE JULY 2025 – TO FIND 25 / 26 SEASON DETAILS – CLICK HERE

Following on from my reference article last season, which you can find here. I thought it was time to get update one for the forthcoming season.

Overview of Kit Manufacturers

Breakdown per Manufacturer (In good old fashioned League Ladders Style)!

Puma – 17 Teams (+1 Team from 23/24)

Macron – 17 Teams (+2 Teams)

Adidas – 11 Teams (+2 Teams)

Umbro – 10 Teams (-3 Teams)

Castore – 6 Teams (-1 Team)

Errea – 6 Teams (same number)

Nike – 6 Teams (-1 Team)

Hummel – 3 Teams (-1 Team)

Oxen – 3 Teams (+1 Team)

Joma – 2 Teams (-1 Team)

New Balance – 2 Teams (same number)

That Leaves nine teams this season that are the only club that their manufacturer supplies.

FBT – Crewe Alexandra (League Two)

Kappa – Hull City (Championship)

Kelme – Watford (Championship)

Mills – Tranmere Rovers (League Two)

O’Neills – Bristol City (Championship)

SUDU – Wolverhampton Wanderers (Premier League)

TAG – Burton Albion (League One)

Terrace – Morecambe (League Two)

VX3 – Newport County (League Two)

So there we have it, 92 Team, 20 manufacturers, 2 more than last season (SUDU and Terrace) and all the details you may need.

Any surprises there, any thoughts and comments please let me know?

EFL, The Championship 23/24: End of Season Kit Report

Posted in EFL, Kit HistoryTagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 6 Comments

The 2023/24 The Championship Season came to a close on Saturday 4th May 2024, with Leicester City securing the title on 29th April and Ipswich Town confirming their promotion as runners up on the final day of the season, making it back to back promotions for The Tractor Boys. Leeds United, Southampton, West Bromwich Albion and Norwich City will compete in the Playoffs for the final promotion place.

I wanted to take a look at the kits worn during the league stage of the season (not including Play Offs).

Kit Stats

  • 1104 Kits worn (552 Games)
  • 86 Different Kit variations used by the 24 teams.
  • Home Kits – 38% of Kit variations used
    • 33 Home Kits worn in total (Including 1 Kit from 24/25 Season)
    • 7 Home Kit variations worn
  • Away Kits – 32% of variations used
    • 27 Away Kits worn in total
    • 3 Away Kit variations worn
  • 3rd Kits – 27% of variations worn
    • 23 3rd Kits worn in total
    • No 3rd Kit variations worn
  • Special Kits – 3% of variations worn
    • 3 Special Kits worn in total

Overview of Kits Worn

Kit Log – Match 1 to Match 15

Kit Log – Match 16 to Match 30

Kit Log – Match 31 to Match 46

Kit Variations

Looking in more detail at the kit variations worn by the Championship Teams

  • Queen’s Park Rangers in 6 Kit Variations: Home x5 (Including 24/25 Home Kit), Away
  • 2 Teams wore 5 Kit Variations
    • Plymouth Argyle: Home x2, Away x2, 3rd
    • Swansea City: Home x2, Away, 3rd, Special Kit
  • 8 Teams wore 4 Kit Variations
    • Birmingham City: Home x2, Away, 3rd
    • Bristol City: Home, Away, 3rd, Special Kit
    • Leeds United: Home, Away x2, 3rd
    • Preston North End: Home, Away, 3rd, Special Kit
    • Southampton: Home, Away x2, 3rd
    • Stoke City: Home x2, Away, 3rd
    • Sunderland: Home x2, Away, 3rd
    • West Bromwich Albion: Home x2, Away, 3rd
  • 13 Teams wore 3 Kit Variations (Home, Away, 3rd Kits)
  • Most Variations of Home Kit – 4 Kits
    • QPR: Hoops with white shorts & socks – Blue shorts & socks – White shorts / blue socks – Blue Shorts / White socks
  • Most Variations of Away Kit – 2 Kits
    • Leeds United: All Blue – Blue / Blue / Aqua Blue
    • Plymouth Argyle: All White – White / White / Green
    • Southampton: White / Turquoise / White – White / Turquoise shorts & socks
  • Most Variations of 3rd Kit – 1 Kits
    • No Team in a 3rd Kit Variation
  • 13 Teams only used Home, Away kits and 3rd Kits with no variations
  • 1 Teams in just Home and Away Kits, with variations used
  • Most worn Home Kit – 41, Norwich City
  • Most worn Away Kit – 18, Hull City
  • Most worn 3rd Kit – 14, Preston North End

Something new that I have created for this season is an overview of when each of the new kits were first worn, for example… Hull City wore their 3rd Kit in their first game, Home Kit in their 2nd game and Away Kit in their 3rd game..!

Match 1 to Match 23

Match 24 to Match 46

Kit Grid

Below is a graphic of what kits where worn against what teams, its one that I share on a weekly basis on my Twitter Account – @Kit_Geek

Kit Highlights and Summary

In 2023/24 Championship season teams wore 85 Kits, this was a decrease in the number kits compared to last season where 99 Kits were worn, this is the joint with League One with the fewest number of Kit Variations seen this season. Ironically the only team with no 3rd Kit, just Home and Away had the most variations used.

The single most worn Kit in the League was Norwich City, who wore their Home Kit in 41 of the 46 League games.

Despite being the only club in the Championship with no 3rd Kit, Queen’s Park Rangers used the most kit looks in the league this season, which included 5 different Home Kit Looks. This does include their 2024/24 Home Kit which they debuted in their final Home game of the season, but they did use their 23/24 Home Kit in four different variations across 32 games, using all possible combinations of blue / white shorts and socks.

A theme seen within The Championship was the use of Change Kit / Alternative Socks to create new looks, QPR as seen above but also Birmingham City (Away Socks), Plymouth Argyle (Away), Stoke City (Alternative Red Socks), Swansea City (3rd) and West Brom Albion (3rd).

There were only three Away variations worn by Championship clubs, with Leeds United, Plymouth Argyle and Southampton all doning alternative socks (Plymouth using Home Socks) during the season. Southampton and Plymouth also using alternative socks in both fixtures between the clubs.

I want to call out Hull City Kits this season, for me they have delivered the perfect three kit looks for them this season and probably my favourite set of Kits across the English Leagues, they used their Home Kit 26 times, Away Kit 18 times including wearing it once at Home in their final Home game of the season, their 3rd was worn just twice, shame!

There were three “Special Kits” on show in the 2023/24 Season…

Bristol City in a 1974 Heritage Kit

Preston North End in a Sir Tom Finney Special Kit

Swansea City in 30th Anniversary Kit of their first appearence at Wembley in Autoglass Trophy

There we have it, The Championship’s End of Season Kit report for 2023/24, please let me know your favourite kit highlights from this division on the comments below or over at – @Kit_Geek

You can find other End of Season Reports below when they are published…!

Premier League – End of Season Report

League One – End of Season Report

League Two – End of Season Report

EFL, League One 23/24: End of Season Kit Report

Posted in EFL, General, Kit History, Kit NewsTagged , , , , , , , , , , , , 7 Comments

The 2023/24 League One Season came to a close on Saturday 27th April 2024, with Portsmouth securing the title on 16th April and Derby County getting promoted as runners up on the final day of the season. Bolton Wanderers, Peterborough United, Oxford United and Barnsley will compete in the Playoffs for the final promotion place.

I wanted to take a look at the kits worn during the league stage of the season (not including Play Offs).

Kit Stats

  • 1104 Kits worn (552 Games)
  • 85 Different Kit variations used by the 24 teams.
  • Home Kits – 36% of Kit variations used
    • 31 Home Kits worn in total (Including 1 Kit from 24/25 Season)
    • 6 Home Kit variations worn
  • Away Kits – 38% of variations used
    • 32 Away Kits worn in total
    • 8 Away Kit variations worn
  • 3rd Kits – 26% of variations worn
    • 22 3rd Kits worn in total
    • 3 3rd Kit variations worn

Overview of Kits Worn

Kit Log – Match 1 to Match 15

Kit Log – Match 16 to Match 30

Kit Log – Match 31 to Match 46

Kit Variations

Looking in more detail at the kit variations worn by the League One Teams

  • 6 Teams in 5 Kit Variations
    • Barnsley: Home, Away x2, 3rd x2
    • Blackpool: Home x2, Away x2, 3rd
    • Cambridge United: Home x3, Away x2
    • Charlton Athletic: Home, Away x2, 3rd x2
    • Reading: Home, Away x2, 3rd, Home 24/25
    • Wycombe Wanderers: Home, Away x2, 3rd x2
  • 3 Teams wore 4 Kit Variations
    • Cheltenham Town: Home x2, Away, 3rd
    • Exeter City: Home, Away x2, 3rd
    • Stevenage: Home x2, Away, 3rd
  • 13 Teams wore 3 Kit Variations
  • 2 Teams wore just 2 Kit Variations
  • Most Variations of Home Kit – 3 Kits
    • Cambridge United: Amber / Black / Black – Amber / Black / Amber – All Amber
  • Most Variations of Away Kit – 2 Kits
    • Barnsley: All White – White / White / Red
    • Blackpool: White / Orange / White – All White
    • Cambridge United: All White – White / Black / Black
    • Charlton Atletic: All Navy – Navy / Navy / White
    • Exeter City: Grey / Grey / White – Grey / Grey / Black
    • Reading: All Grey – Grey / Grey / Blue
    • Shrewsbury Town: All Red – Red / Red / White
    • Wycombe Wanderers: Green & White Stripes / Green / White – Green & White Stripes / Green / Green
  • Most Variations of 3rd Kit – 2 Kits
    • Barnsley: All Black – Black / Black / White
    • Charlton Athletic: White / Black / White – All White
    • Wycombe Wanderers: Red / White / Red – Red / White / White
  • 11 Teams only used Home, Away kits and 3rd Kits with no variations
  • 5 Teams in just Home and Away Kits, with variations used
  • Most worn Home Kit – 40, Cambrige United, (34 Default / 6 Variations)
  • Most worn Away Kit – 17, Charlton Athletic (15 Default / 2 Variations)
  • Most worn 3rd Kit – 11, Peterborough United

Something new that I have created for this season is an overview of when each of the new kits were first worn, for example… Exeter City their Away Kit in their first game, Home Kit in their 2nd game and 3rd Kit in their 3rd game..!

Match 1 to Match 23

Match 24 to Match 46

Kit Grid

Below is a graphic of what kits where worn against what teams, its one that I share on a weekly basis on my Twitter Account – @Kit_Geek

Kit Highlights and Summary

In 2023/24 League One season teams wore 85 Kits, this was a decrease in the number kits compared to last season where 102 Kits were worn, as it stands this is the joint with the Championship with the fewest number of Kit Variations seen this season. It was also the only League that had clubs with just two kit variations used, the Home Kit and Away Kit.

The single most worn Kit in the League was from Bristol Rovers who wore their Home Kit in 37 of 46 games, only wearing their away strip twice in the final 22 games of the season.

Cambridge United were one of six teams that wore five different kit variations this season, the most in League One however they were the only club to do this with just Home and Away Kits, wearing three different variations of their Home Kit..! Using this variations meant that they used their Home Kit 40 times out of the 46 games, alternative amber socks were used both Home and Away to create alternative kit variations.

The two clubs to wear just two kits this season in both EFL and Premier League were in League One, they were:

Carlisle United, who wore their Home Kit 36 times and Away Kit 10 times.

Fleetwood Town, who wore their Home Kit 34 times and Away Kit 12 times.

Charlton Athletic wore their change kits (and variations of them) in 22 of their 23 away games, the only game which they wore their Home Kit away from The Valley was the game against Reading on 10th February 2024.

There were instances of clubs wearing change kits in Home Games this season, with five clubs changing from their default home kit.

Bristol Rovers wore a 140th Anniversary Celebration Kit at Home to Cheltenham Town.

Cheltenham Town wore a charity 3rd Kit against Shrewsbury Town.

Exeter City wore their 3rd Kit at Home against Leyton Orient to celebrate 20 years of their Fan Trust Ownership.

Leyton Orient themselves wore their away kit at home against Barnsley, this was due to Barnsley’s white Away kit being damaged in a Bus Fire in the weeks before their fixture, so it agreed that the home team would change to their Away kit to also avoid any colourblind kit clashes.

Stevenage wore their charity 3rd kit at home against Burton Albion.

There we have it, League One’s End of Season Kit report for 2023/24, please let me know your favourite kit highlights from this division on the comments below or over at Twitter – @Kit_Geek

You can find other End of Season Reports below when they are published…!

Premier League – End of Season Report

Championship – End of Season Report

League Two – End of Season Report

EFL, League Two 23/24: End of Season Kit Report

Posted in EFL, Kit HistoryTagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 7 Comments

The 2023/24 League Two Season came to a close on Saturday 27th April 2024, with Stockport County securing the title, with Wrexham as runners up who make it back to back Promotions and the final automatic spot being secured by Mansfield Town. MK Dons, Doncaster Rovers, Crewe Alexandra, and Crawley Town will compete in the Playoffs for the final promotion place.

I wanted to take a look at the kits worn during the league stage of the season (not including Play Offs).

Kit Stats

  • 1104 Kits worn (552 Games)
  • 106 Different Kit variations used by the 24 teams.
  • Home Kits – 38% of Kit variations used
    • 41 Home Kits worn in total
    • 17 Home Kit variations worn
  • Away Kits – 35% of variations used
    • 37 Away Kits worn in total
    • 13 Away Kit variations worn
  • 3rd Kits – 24% of variations worn
    • 25 3rd Kits worn in total
    • 5 3rd Kit variations worn
  • Special Kit – 3% of variations worn
    • 3 Special Kit worn

Overview of Kits Worn

Kit Overview

Kit Log – Match 1 to Match 15

Kit Log – Match 16 to Match 30

Kit Log – Match 31 to Match 46

Kit Variations

Looking in more detail at the kit variations worn by the League Two Teams

  • Crawley Town wore 8 Kit Variations: Home x3, Away x3, 3rd x2
  • 2 Teams wore 7 Kit Variations
    • Newport County: Home x2, Away x3, 3rd, Special Kit
    • Salford City: Home x3, Away, 3rd x3
  • 3 Teams wore 6 Kit Variations
    • AFC Wimbledon: Home, Away x3, 3rd, Special Kit
    • Morecambe: Home x4, Away x2
    • Walsall – Home x2, Away x3, 3rd
  • 3 Teams wore 5 Kit Variations
    • Crewe Alexandra: Home x2, Away x2, 3rd
    • Grimsby Town: Home x2, Away x2, 3rd
    • Harrogate Town: Home x2, Away x2, 3rd
  • 6 Teams wore 4 Kit Variations
  • 9 Teams in just 3 Kit Variations
  • Most Variations of Home Kit – 4 Kits
    • Morecambe: Red / White / Red – Red / White / White – All Red – Red / White / Black
  • Most Variations of Away Kit – 3 Kits
    • AFC Wimbledon: All White – White / Blue / Blue – White / Blue / White
    • Crawley Town: Green / Black / Green – Green / White / Green – Green / Black / Black
    • Newport County: All White – White / Black / White – White / Black / Black
    • Walsall: All White – White / Red / White – White / Red / Red
  • Most Variations of 3rd Kit – 3 Kits
    • Salford City: White – Black – Black / White – Black – White / All White
  • Sutton United in 4 different kits with no variations
  • 7 Teams only used Home, Away kits and 3rd Kits with no variations
  • 3 Teams in just Home and Away Kits, with variations used
  • Most worn Home Kit – 39, Stockport County
  • Most worn Away Kit – 16, Harrogate Town / Colchester United (11 Default / 5 with White Socks)
  • Most worn 3rd Kit – 12, AFC Wimbledon

Something new that I have created for this season is an overview of when each of the new kits were first worn, for example… AFC Wimbledon wore their Home Kit in their first game, 3rd Kit in their 3rd game and Away Kit in their 4th game..!

Match 1 to Match 23

Match 24 to Match 46

Kit Grid

Below is a graphic of what kits where worn against what teams, its one that I share on a weekly basis on my Twitter Account – @Kit_Geek

Kit Highlights and Summary

In 2023/24 League Two season teams wore 106 Kits, this was an increase in the number kits compared to last season where 93 Kits were worn, in fact this number of kits was passed just under half way through the season on 23rd December 2023. League Two was only beaten by the Premier League in the number of Kit Variations used in the English Leagues this season.

The most worn Kit in the League was from Champions Stockport County who wore their wonderful Home Kit in 39 of 46 games, only changing 7 times throughout the whole season..!

Harrogate Town wore change kits in all their away games this season, wearing their Away Kit 16 times and 3rd Kit 7 Times in two different variations…!

Between Match 40 and Match 44, AFC Wimbledon wore 5 different kits in 5 games, this included Home Kit, 2 variations of their Away Kit, 3rd Kit and Special Charity Kit.. these games were over 3 weeks between 23rd March and 13th April.

There were three “Special Kits” used in League Two this season, each of them Charity Kits…

AFC Wimbledon for War Child and their own community charity.

Newport County for Motor Neurone Disease Association.

Sutton United for Royal Marsden Cancer Charity

Although not a charity kit Mansfield Town wore Red Socks with their Home Kit for Down’s Syndrome Association awareness week, something they have also done in previous seasons.

Grimsby Town’s home kit, gives us a nice little kit quirk in League Two with several teams having wearing alternative socks due to the red socks worn by the club, last season there were 5 teams that used alternative socks when playing against The Mariners, this season that number was 6 plus Newport County wore white shorts as an alternative against them!

Morecambe with only a Home and Away Kits used 6 different kit variations, with 4 different Home Kit Looks and 2 Away Kits, using 2 Shirts, 3 pairs of shorts and 2 pairs of socks!

There we have it, League Two’s End of Season Kit report for 2023/24, please let me know your favourite kit highlights from this division on the comments below or over at Twitter – @Kit_Geek

You can find other End of Season Reports below when they are published…!

Premier League: End of Season Report

Championship: End of Season Report

League One: End of Season Report

League Two – 100 Kits!

Posted in EFL, General, Kit History, Kit NewsTagged , , , , , , , , , , 1 Comment

League Two Clubs are the gift that keeps on giving for us Kit Geeks, on Saturday 10th February we saw the 100th Kit Variation used by the 24 clubs in League Two in 362 Games, for comparison in whole of the 2022/23 season there were a total 94 Kits used, this number was surpassed just under half way through the season with Newport County wearing a kit mash up that contained Away Shirt / Home Shorts / 3rd Socks on at Wrexham on 23rd December 2023.

So where have the 100 kits come from?

The way that I define it is a discintive look, so taking all the elements of the kit (Shirt / Shorts / Socks) and then reviewing how that look is made up and the differences in the kit looks, so a club’s default home kit would be one look and then if the home shirt is worn with default shorts but away kit socks, that becomes a new kit variation.

Overview:

  • 24 – Home Kits
  • 15 – Home Kit Variations
  • 24 – Away Kits
  • 11 – Away Kit Variations
  • 20 – 3rd Kits
  • 5 – 3rd Kit Variations
  • 1 – 4th / Special Kit

Looking at the Clubs in more detail, these kits are in order of their appearence this season and the number of times each kit has been used underneath it, this information is correct up to Saturday 10th February.

Accrington Stanley – 4 Kit used, with the Home, Away and 3rd Kits joined by a Home Kit with alternative white socks!

AFC Wimbledon – One of the ten teams to use just Home, Away and 3rd Kits

Barrow AFC – Another team with Home, Away and 3rd Kits

Bradford City – Home, Away and 3rd Kits for The Bantams

Colchester United – Three Kit variations for Colchester, however just Home and Away, with an Away variation with alternative white socks!

Crawley Town – The most variations of the 100 Kits is from Crawley Town with 8 Kits, with different elements of each of the three kits being used to create three different Home Kit looks, three Away Kits and two 3rd Kit variations. The final variation used was the 100th Kit of the Season, their Default 3rd Kit (White / Black / White) used at Crewe Alexandra.

Crewe Alexandra – 5 Kits used by Crewe, with Home and Away variations combined with the three default kits.

Doncaster Rovers – 4 Kits used, with Home Kit with away shorts being used as a variation, we are still to see their default Away Kit this season!

Forest Green Rovers – Just Home, Away and 3rd Kits used (in that order as well).

Gillingham – Our 5th Team with just Home, Away and 3rd Kits

Grimsby Town – 5 Kits for Grimsby, with mash ups of socks between Home and Away Kits

Harrogate Town – Another team to use socks to create mash up looks, Home and 3rd Kits in Harrogate’s case

Mansfield Town – Home, Away and 3rd Kits

Milton Keynes Dons – Another team with just Home, Away and 3rd Kits

Morecambe – Although just having Home and Away Kits this season, Morecambe have used alternative white socks and mash ups to create 5 Kit Variations in total

Newport County – One of two teams to use 7 Kit Variations, however the only team in League Two (and EFL / Premier League) to use a 4th Kit this season, also using two different Home Looks, three Away and 3rd Kit!

Notts County – Another team to use just Home and Away Kits, with alternative white shorts and socks being used to create a second Home Kit look

Salford City - The 2nd Team with 7 Kit Variations, again another team using element of the kits to create different looks, Salford’s however have only used Black Shorts / Socks and White Shorts / Socks to create the look with their three different shirts.

Stockport County – The 8th Team Home, Away and 3rd Kits

Sutton United – Home, Away and 3rd Kits

Swindon Town – 4 Kits, with Home combined with 3rd Socks to create an alternative look

Tranmere Rovers – The Final team with just Home, Away and 3rd Kits, also Tranmere’s Home kit at this moment is the most used kit in League Two with 23 appearences in their 31 games so far (correct as of 12th February)

Walsall – The only that has used 6 Kit Variations this season so far, Walsall are one of my favourite teams for kit usage, often creating different looks with their kit elements, this season has seen two Home Kits, three Away and just the default 3rd Kit used.

Wrexham – 4 Kits looks, with the alternative variation of Away and Home socks being 4 times so far this season!

As mentioned above the 100th Kit used was Crawley Town’s use of their default 3rd Kit against Crewe Alexandra on Saturday 10th February 2024.

Kit Grid – Up to 12th February, this shows what the fixtures were for this season so far!

One Final look, at when the Kits were worn… this view shows you at which match the new kit look / variation was first used, for example… AFC Wimbledon wore their Home Kit in their first game, 3rd Kit in their 3rd game and Away Kit in their 4th game..!

There we have it 100 Kits of League Two, let me know your thoughts and comments below or over at @Kit_Geek

Kit Variations – English Leagues

Posted in EFL, General, Kit History, Kit News, Premier League Kit LogTagged , , , , , , , , , , 1 Comment

I am always looking for new ways to visualise what I do, as regular followers will know I like to look into the details of the Kits worn across various football competitions, so this is a post to consolidate some of that data and it will be one that will be flexible and be updated as we move through the rest of the 2023/24 Season!

One of those things that I look at are the variations of the kits used, but what does that actually mean…

I break the Kits down into their three main elements – Shirts / Shorts / Socks, then I look at the variations of these elements worn with the shirt which is the consistent part of the kit!

Definitions of Terms used

  • Default Kit – This is the regisitered Kit of Each Team, so Home, Away and Third Kits (Could Also be termed as Primary, Secondary, Tertiary Kits)
  • Kit Variation – One of the Shorts and Socks is change with either the Home, Away and Third Kits
  • Mash Up – The use of elements of different kits being used together, for example Away Shirt worn with Home Shorts and Third Socks (as coined on The Football Kit Podcast)
  • Alternative Shorts / Socks – A bespoke alternative pair of shorts and socks, created for a specific kit

Some examples…

Default Kits – The way the kits are designed to worn, Stockport County showing their three kits at the start of the 2023/24 Season.

Kit Variation – Manchester United are an excellent example of this, Home Shirt was been worn in six different variations this season in Premier League.

Mash up – Luton Town are my go to choice here, having worn the ultimate Mash Up already this season by wearing their Third Shirt with Away Shorts and Home Socks.

Alternative Shorts / Socks – A good example here is Everton this season, who have worn their Away kit with “Default” Navy shorts and socks and also “Alternative” Salmon / Coral shorts and socks

Kit Variations – 2023/24 – Last update, 2nd February 2024

So here we are this season and here is a snapshot that shows all the kits used in the Premier League and EFL so far this season.

Premier League – 94 Kits in Total

  • 37 Home Kits (20 Default / 17 Variations)
  • 35 Away Kits (20 Default / 15 Variations)
  • 22 Third Kits (13 Default / 9 Varitions)
  • Manchester United have worn 10 Kit Variations this season
  • 3 Teams in 6 Kit Variations
  • 6 Teams in 5 Kit Variations
  • 6 Teams in 4 Kit Variations
  • 4 Teams in 3 Kit Variations

Championship – 81 Kits in Total

  • 31 Home Kits (24 Default / 7 Variations)
  • 27 Away Kits (24 Default / 3 Variations)
  • 23 Third Kits (All Default)
  • Queen’s Park Rangers have worn 5 Kit Variations
  • 7 Teams in 4 Kit Variations
  • 16 Teams in 3 Kit Variations

League One – 76 Kits in Total

  • 29 Home Kits (24 Default / 5 Variations)
  • 26 Away Kits (24 Default / 2 Variations)
  • 21 Third Kits (18 Default / 3 Varitions)
  • 7 Teams in 4 Kit Variations
  • 14 Teams in 3 Kit Variations
  • 3 Teams in 2 Kit Variations

League Two – 98 Kit Variations

  • 39 Home Kits (24 Default / 15 Variations)
  • 34 Away Kits (24 Default / 10 Variations)
  • 24 Third Kits (19 Default / 5 Varitions)
  • 1 Fourth Kit
  • 3 Teams in 7 Kit Variations
  • 1 Team in 6 Kit Variations
  • 3 Teams in 5 Kit Variations
  • 5 Teams in 4 Kit Variations
  • 12 Teams in 3 Kit Variations

The only Fourth Kit used so far this season is from Newport County, worn at Home against Stockport Country on 25th November 2023, this was a Charity Kit for their former winger Jason Bowen and the Motor Neurone Disease Association.

There we have it, I hope this gives you a little bit insight into how I look at kits and how I record their usage, I will continue to update this as we move through the final months of the season.

Any thoughts or comments, please let me know!

Kit Manufacturers Breakdown: 2023/24

Posted in EFL, Kit History, Kit News, Premier League Kit LogTagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 4 Comments

I created a graphic this week that showed a breakdown of the Kit Manufacturers of the current 92 English League Clubs from Premier League and EFL for this current season.

So thought I would create something with a little more detail for those Kit Nerds and Geeks out there, a form of reference guide for Kits and Clubs for the 2023/24 Season.

2024/25 Season can be found here

Overview of Kit Manufacturers

Breakdown per Manufacturer (In good old fashioned League Ladders Style)!

Puma – 16 Teams

Macron – 15 Teams

Umbro – 13 Teams

Adidas – 9 Teams

Castore – 7 Teams

Nike – 7 Teams

Errea – 6 Teams

Hummel – 4 Teams

Joma – 3 Teams

New Balance – 2 Teams

O’Neills – 2 Teams

Oxen – 2 Teams

That Leaves six teams, each being the only club that their manufacturer supplies.

FBT – Crewe Alexandra (League Two)

Kappa – Hull City (Championship)

Kelme – Watford (Championship)

Mills – Tranmere Rovers (League Two)

Tag – Burton Albion (League One)

VX3 – Newport County (League Two)

So there we have it, 92 Team, 18 manufacturers and all the details you may need.

Any surprises there, any thoughts and comments please let me know?

2024/25 Season can be found here

EFL, League Two 22/23 – End of Season Report

Posted in EFLTagged , , , , , , , , 3 Comments

The 2022/23 League Two Season came to a close on Monday 8th May 2023, with Leyton Orient securing the title well before the end of the season on 22nd April, Stevenage were runners up with a remarkable turnaround from their previous season and the final automatic spot being secured by Northampton Twon on the final day of the season. Stockport County, Carlisle United, Bradford City and Salford City will compete in the Playoffs for the final promotion place.

I wanted to take a look at the kits worn during the league stage of the season (not including Play Offs).

Kit Stats

  • 1104 Kits worn (552 Games)
  • 93 Different Kit variations used by the 24 teams.
  • Home Kits – 38% of Kit variations used
    • 26 Home Kits worn, includes 2 23/24 kits
    • 9 Home Kit variations worn
  • Away Kits – 34% of variations used
    • 24 Away Kits worn
    • 8 Away Kit variations worn
  • 3rd Kits – 27% of variations worn
    • 20 3rd Kits worn
    • 5 3rd Kit variations worn
  • Special Kit – 1% of variations worn
    • 1 Special Kit worn

Overview of Kits Worn

Kit Overview

Kit Log – Match 1 to Match 15

Kit Log – Match 16 to Match 30

Kit Log – Match 31 to Match 46

Kit Variations

Looking in more detail at the kit variations worn by the League Two Teams

  • 3 Teams wore 6 Kit Variations
    • Crawley Town – Home x2, Away x3, 3rd
    • Hartlepool United – Home x3, Away x2, 3rd
    • Walsall – Home x2, Away x3, 3rd
  • 3 Teams wore 5 Kit Variations
    • Barrow AFC – Home x2 (Inc 23/24 Home), Away x2, 3rd
    • Rochdale – Home x3, Away, 3rd
    • Salford City – Home, Away, 3rd x3
  • 8 Teams wore 4 Kit Variations
  • 8 Teams in just 3 Kit Variations
  • 2 Teams in just 2 Kit Variations
  • Most Variations of Home Kit – 3 Kits
    • Hartlepool United: White/Blue – White – White (with hoop) / White/Blue – White – White / White/Blue – White – Red
    • Rochdale: Blue/Black – White – Black / Blue/Black – Black – Black / Blue/Black – White – White
  • Most Variations of Away Kit – 3 Kits
    • Crawley Town: White – Black – White / All White / White – Black – Black
    • Walsall: All White / White – White – Red / White – Red – White
  • Most Variations of 3rd Kit – 3 Kits
    • Salford City: White – Black – Black / White – Black – White / All White
  • Sutton United in 4 different kits with no variations
  • 7 Teams only used Home, Away kits and 3rd Kits with no variations
  • 2 Teams in just Home and Away Kits
  • Most worn Home Kit – 39, Mansfield Town, 38 default look and once with away socks
  • Most worn Away Kit – 16, Stevenage
  • Most worn 3rd Kit – 10, Swindon Town, 9 default look and once with home shorts

Kit Grid

Below is a graphic of what kits where worn against what teams, its one that I share on a weekly basis on my Twitter Account – @Kit_Geek

Kit Highlights and Summary

In 2022/23 League Two teams wore 93 Kits, this was an increase in the number kits compared to last season where 86 Kits were worn, although there was an increase season on season this was lowest in English Leagues this season. League Two was also the only league which had two teams in just two kits (Home and Away), Colchester United and Stevenage. Stevenage did use a special kit in their FA Cup victory against Aston Villa but this was never used for League games.

Hartlepool United were one of two teams that wore their home kit in 3 different variations, however two of these looks used white socks. They went through a period during the season, from 31st December to 3rd April where their home kit look was with just plain white socks rather than the default home socks with contained red bands and Errea branding within them. Supply Issues, the Kit-Man’s choice, one of the Kit Mysteries of 2022/23 season!

There was just the one “Special” Kit on show this season, and that was Sutton United’s 125th Anniversary Kit which saw The Us turn out in a red kit with white shorts and red socks, their orignal club colours from 125 years ago. This was part of a run that of games that had Sutton in 4 completely different kits in 4 games.

Grimsby Town’s home kit caused some teams in League one some issues with socks this season, Grimsby’s default look uses red socks which meant that 5 teams used alternative socks when playing against The Mariners..

Carlisle United, wore their Away kit with Home socks…

Crawley Town in Home Kit with Away socks…

Crewe Alexander in Home Kit with 3rd shorts and socks…

Doncaster Rovers in their 3rd kit with Away socks…

Walsall in Home kit with Away socks…

Carlisle United only had Home and Away kits this season but used these kits to mix a match two additional looks, as mentioned above using one look to face Grimsby Town and then using Home Shirts, Away shorts and socks against Bradford City

Mansfield Town were one of a number teams across the EFL to use their kit to raise awareness for a charity. The Stags wore the club’s light blue away socks with amber shirts and blue shorts as a display of support to mark Down’s Syndrome Awareness Week, and the Down’s Syndrome Association’s #LotsOfSocks campaign.

On the final day of the season, two teams wore their 2023/24 Home Kits… Barrow AFC wore their new Puma Home Kit and Newport County debuted their kit from VX3 who are replacing Hummel as their manufacturer.

There we have it, League Two’s End of Season Kit report for 2022/23, please let me know your favourite kit highlights from this division on the comments below or over at Twitter – @Kit_Geek

You can find other End of Season Reports below.

Premier League – 2022/23 End of Season Report

Championsip – 2022/23 End of Season Report

League One – 2022/23 End of Season Report