Tag: Euros

England Kit History: 2020-2024

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As regular readers will know I have documented the England Men’s National Football Team’s Kit History from 1960 to The Modern Day, creating some reference articles and documents for those that like to have quick reference to these things.

You can find the following, which takes a look at the decades in more details.

It is time to take a look at first half of 2020’s in some more detail, one of the most successful period’s in Men’s National team history which meant the team played 67 games across these five years, which is the most in a five year period in these records.

The Three Lions wore their Primary (Home) Kit 53 times and Secondary Kits 14 times. The use of the secondary kit was down on previous years to 21%.

This includes three tournaments where England have not worn a change kit, wearing only Primary Kits (including All White variations) in their 19 Major Tournament Games in this period of time.

2020

2020, a year like no other… with the World coming to a stop, football also stopped for a period of time and Euro 2020 was postponed until the following year. As domestic football was one of the first things to start up again after “lockdown”, International Football returned in September of that year with eight games played in September, October and November.

When the football did restart, England played in their Kits which were scheduled to used for Euro 2020, and originally planned to released in March. The Primary Shirt saw a return to the centrally placed Crest and Logo, this was the first time since 2004. The Secondary kit was Royal Blue, this was the first time the secondary kit was not red since since 2012, and the first time Royal Blue has been used since 1950s.

The first time the new kit was used was in The Nation’s League game Away to Iceland in it’s All White Variation, a look that would used a total of 10 times over the years this kit was used.

The default look with Navy shorts was used four times in total in 2020, including the first game at Wembley for the team in nearly a year against Wales.

The first time the secondary kit was worn was also at Wembley, this kit was used twice in 2020 both games at Home, in Nation’s League game against Denmark and the Friendly against Ireland.

2021

2021 was the year with the most games in a calendar year, with 19 games played in total with World Cup 2022 Qualifying and Euro 2020 all taking place through-out the year, with the kits launched the previous year.

England had their most successful tournament since 1996, reaching the final of Euro 2020. During their run to the final they wore their Primary Kit in all seven games, wearing All White in all group games and their last 16 game against Germany.

They only wore their default look in Quarter-Final and Semi-Final, with the Quarters being the only game played outside of Wembley Stadium, which was against Ukraine in Rome.

England used their Secondary kit five times in total in 2021, of which three of the games were played at Home.

2022

2022 was a World Cup year but a World Cup Year with a difference, with the tournament being hosted by Qatar it meant it was a Winter World Cup taking place in November / December, this also meant new Kits for The Three Lions before the tournament kicked off.

England started the year in kits from 2020 / 2021, meaning these kits had a life span of 33 games (24 for Primary Kit and 9 for Secondary Kit), the longest spell kits had been used since the early 1980s.

The final use of the Royal Blue Away Kit was against Germany in June, and was only the 3rd time it had been used in an Away game in it’s nine usages (being worn six times in Home Games).

The return Nation’s League fixture against Germany was first outing of the new England Secondary Kit, which was a return to red, the kit was All Red, although England had played in all red several times over the previous 12 years this was the first time All Red had been used as a default change kit since 1995.

The new Primary kit was a design that changed the overall look of the shirt. Turquiose blue returned as an accent colour, this was the first time since 1996 that we have seen this used in an England kit (it was also used in secondary kit with crest, logo and nameset).

The biggest design element was the use of the blues across the shoulders of the shirt, which provided a different take on the often plain white shirts and was first used against Italy in a Friendly in September.

You can find a more detailed review of these kits here.

The first competitive action this new kit was used in was the opening game of the World Cup against Iran, it was used with it’s default navy shorts. There was also saw a return of blue nameset which were last used in 2017.

England reached the Quarter-Finals of The World Cup, playing all five of their games in this Primary Kit with three games played in the default look and two games played with white shorts (USA and Senegal). The Knock-out games were also the first games England had played in December since 1995.

2023

This year was a relatively quiet year in terms of England Football, with qualifying for European Championship taking the majority of the game time.

The game against Ukraine (played in Poland) was the 2nd and final use of the current Secondary Kit, only being used twice in it’s life-cycle, this was least used kit since the first Nike Secondary Kit back in 2013, a real shame in my eyes as I believe this is one the best looking Kits that Nike has produce for England over the years.

The final use of the Primary Kit was against North Macedonia in November, which meant this kit was used 15 times in total in it’s 14 months being England’s kit.

2024

Another Major Championship year, meant new kits launched. The Primary Kit saw a return of red as accent / trim colour and more traditional looking white shirt. It was the Secondary Kit that was adventurous with its design, a new colour entering the change kit palette with the kit being marketed as “Dark Raisin”, a shade of purple.

You again find my more detailed look at these kits here

First wearing the new Kit against Brazil in the opening International Fixture of the Year.

The second game of that International Break in March gave us the debut of the new Secondary Kit at Belgium (who also wore their change kit in the fixture).

Euro 2024, was the third tournament of this 5 year period and also the third tournament in a row where England only wore their Primary Kit.

Again reaching the final meant they played 7 games in total, wearing their default Navy Shorts in 3 games and All White in 4 games, including the Final against Spain.

The All White variation was used eight times in total in 2024, the single most used look of that year, with the default navy shorts being used just six times.

Breakdown per year – 67 Games in Total

  • 2020 – 8 Games
    • 2 Primary Kit Variations
    • 1 Secondary Kit Variation
  • 2021 – 19 Games
    • 2 Primary Kit Variations
    • 1 Secondary Kit Variation
  • 2022 – 13 Games
    • 4 Primary Kit Variations
    • 2 Secondary Kit Variations
  • 2023 – 10 Games
    • 2 Primary Kit Variations
    • 1 Secondary Kit Variation
  • 2024 – 17 Games
    • 2 Primary Kit Variations
    • 1 Secondary Kit Variation

Well, that is the first half of 2020’s completed, 67 games in total, more games than any other five year period, there were three official primary and three secondary kits used and total of 9 different kit variations!

Let me know your thoughts and comments below or over at @Kit_Geek and a reminder that the overall visual page of the England Kit History is now also live on the site here

Resources for this article / project

England Football Online

Historical Football Kits

England Kit History: 1990-1999

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As regular readers will know I am looking to document the England Men’s National Football Team’s Kit History from 1960 to The Modern Day, creating some reference articles and documents for those that like to have quick reference to these things.

So far, you can find the following:

England played 112 Games between 1990 and 1990, a slight reduction in matches from the 80s and which The Three Lions wore their Primary (Home) Kit 88 times and Change Kits again just 24 times, the most time change kits have been worn with 21.5% of the total games being played in change kits, including two different 3rd kits, but more on that later.

The 90s was a decade where England’s kits were solely supplied by Umbro but as we will see the frequency of changing these kits significantly changed from what we have seen in previous years!

1990

The 90s started with a brand new set of kits released by Umbro, the set was made up of Primary, Secondary and 3rd kit! A set of kits which remains a fans favourites with all three kits seen today at England games in various re-releases!

The Primary kit was first used against Brazil in March 1990 and in the 15 games England played in total in 1990 they wore this look 14 times!

The only game where England did not wear their classic primary look was a World Cup warm up game against Uruguay at Wembley, England using their change kits at Home was becoming something of a theme now!

1990 was also a World Cup year, with England performing well and reaching the Semi-Finals, this meant that they played seven games in total at Italia 90, however they did not change from the Primary kit wearing it all their games!

1991 – 1992

The Summer of 1991 gave us England in five different kit looks, in five games..

It started with the only use of the 3rd Kit from this latest Umbro range, a victory at Turkey in May.

Then wearing Primary Kit against USSR and Secondary Kit against Argentina at Wembley.

The classic Primary kit was used in other look was when the Secondary shorts were added to create an All White look against Australia, this was the first of two games in that Summer Tour of the Southern Hemisphere where all white was used and one of only three times when the all white look was used in the 90s (the last use was a lot more well known than these ones)!

The final kit in this run was playing against New Zealand when in the first of two games, they went for another mash up, with secondary kit combined with Primary shorts!

1992 gave us a replacement 3rd Kit, with the Primary and Secondary Kits remaining in place for a 3rd year (the last time this would happen in England Kit History)!

This 3rd Kit was worn twice in 1992, at Czechoslovakia and Spain and is another well loved and regarded kit with this design incorporating “The Three Lions” in it’s design of both shirt and shorts.

As regular readers will know, England in Sky Blue is one of my favourite Kit quirks and I have written a dedicated piece all about England in Sky Blue which you can find here.

1993 – 1994

1993 started with the launch of a new Primary Kit, which starts a run of a new kit being launched every year alternating between Primary and Secondary, which would be theme of kit launches for the majority of remaining years in which Umbro would be the England Kit Supplier!

This kit was one of the forgotten kits of this period, likely as it was never worn in major finals with England failing to reach World Cup 94, the kit was first worn in the World Cup Qualifier against San Marino! The kit included a larger shield around the crest that we have seen before and a lot more red in the shorts!

In the summer of 1993, England played in a tournament in the United States in preparation for the World Cup the following year, this tournament saw England play three games (USA, Brazil and Germany) with two of them in the Secondary Kit from 1990, meaning this kit spanned four years.

However there were some slight differences with this one, the new crest (with larger shield), the updated Umbro logo, with capital letters used for wordmark and the nameset numbers / player names used for that season.

This kit was also used with Primary shorts of the 1993 Kit against USA, for another kit variation look.

With the team failing to qualify for the 1994 World Cup, it meant The Three Lions only played six games in 1994, the fewest since 1967.

However there was time to launch a new Secondary Kit, another kit that often gets forgotten, this was a darker red than seen before and marketed as “wine red”. It also included red shorts for the first time in it’s default look and the first time England played in all red since early 1970!

1995 – 1996

1995 started with England visiting Ireland, wearing their red secondary kit for the 2nd time, however due to crowd trouble the game was abandoned after 27 minutes.

In March, England launched their new Primary Kit and the kit that would be worn when England hosted the Euros the following year. This kit was big change from the previous 20 years, with no red in the kit for the first time since 1974, however a new colour was introduced, turquoise was now incorporated into all three elements of the kit’s trim!

It used a central crest for the first time in England’s Kit History.

Another change was the introduction different colour nameset, traditionally England had always used red numbers with their Primary Kit, this kit used navy with turquoise trim.

1996 started with a new secondary kit and at the time one of the most controversial kits, certainly in England’s Kit History. The kit was not red, and was “Indigo”, almost grey in its look! It was peak 90s in terms of it’s design and was certainly planned with one eye on what fans would wear rather than keeping with tradition!

First worn against Bulgaria in March (actually with solid red numbers), it was most famously worn at Euro 96 in the Semi-Final against Germany which ended in penalty defeat. It was worn one more time at Georgia, meaning it made 3 appearances in it’s only season of use! Although not regarded so at the time, this kit is considered a classic nowadays by fans and kit lovers alike.

And remember that this may be the only football kit to feature in a number one single… “Tears for heroes dressed in grey”, 3 Lions ’98!

1997 – 1999

During 1997 England launched two new kits, first a new Primary kit and then a secondary kit replacing the much maligned Indigo Kit!

The Primary kit saw a return to red as part of the kit, including the nameset and was first worn against Italy in February of that year, one of three games against them in 1997. The central crest / logo remained in place from the previous kit! The Primary kit was used in 10 times in the 11 games of this year!

The new Secondary kit was launched in the summer and was a return to red, with a stripe included in the shirt, the only “striped” shirt in England kit history so far!

The one game the kit was worn in 1997 was at La Tournoi, a tournament in France which was part of the preparations for World Cup ’98, England lifted the trophy in this kit after winning the tournament!

1998, A World Cup year and it was in the World Cup that see some interesting use of the two current England Kits, in their opening two games the default Primary Kit was worn, however in the final Group match against Colombia, the Secondary Kit was combined Primary socks to create a red / white / white look, the first time this combination had been seen in 16 years, also at World Cup (v France, 1982).

The next game, the Last 16 game against Argentina was another mash up, this time Primary Kit with Secondary shorts, to create an “All White” look (only the 2nd time this was seen in the 90s). The only thing about this mash up was the numbers on the shorts, being different from the shirt was slightly jarring (probably just me I know!!).

The final year of the 90s was the only year in which England used two completely different Primary and Secondary Kits in this decade, starting the year in games against France (Primary) and Poland (Secondary) of the kits from 1997/98!

April saw the release of a new Primary Kit, which was a stripped back kit in terms of design from the previous years and return to a more a classic look of the 1960’s! A return to just white and navy, the crest returned to it’s traditional position on the shirt and there was a crew neckline for first time in 10 years.

The final kit released this decade was also one of the strangest, remaining red in it’s colour it was made of woolen material which I am not sure was the most efficient fabric for elite sportsmen and something that is unlikely to return!

Breakdown per year – 112 Games in Total

  • 1990 – 15 Games
    • 1 Primary Kit Variation
    • 1 Secondary Kit Variation
  • 1991 – 12 Games
    • 2 Primary Kit Variations
    • 2 Secondary Kit Variations
    • 1 3rd Kit Variation
  • 1992 – 12 Games
    • 1 Primary Kit Variation
    • 1 Secondary Kit Variation
    • 1 3rd Kit Variation
  • 1993 – 11 Games
    • 1 Primary Kit Variation
    • 2 Secondary Kit Variations
  • 1994 – 6 Games
    • 1 Primary Kit Variation
    • 1 Secondary Kit Variation
  • 1995 – 9 Games
    • 1 Primary Kit Variation
    • 1 Secondary Kit Variation
  • 1996 – 12 Games
    • 1 Primary Kit Variation
    • 1 Secondary Kit Variation
  • 1997 – 11 Games
    • 1 Primary Kit Variation
    • 1 Secondary Kit Variation
  • 1998 – 14 Games
    • 2 Primary Kit Variations
    • 2 Secondary Kit Variations
  • 1989 – 10 Games
    • 2 Primary Kit Variations
    • 2 Secondary Kit Variations

Well, that is the 1990s completed, 112 games in total, different kit looks and changes, five official primary and secondary kits used and two 3rd Kits!

I will return with a look back at the 2000s!

Let me know your thoughts and comments below or over at @Kit_Geek and a reminder that the overall visual page of the England Kit History is now also live on the site here

Resources for this article / project

England Football Online

Historical Football Kits

True Colours – Volume 2 and International Kits

Euro 2024: Kit Report

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On Sunday 14th July Euro 2024 came to close with Spain defeating England in the final at Berlin of the 17th Edition on the European Championships.

As always I like to take a look at the kits worn through out the competition and here looking at the Knockout Phase. You can find the Group Stages and the kits worn in those games here.

Fixtures

Round of 16 Games – 29th June to 2nd July

Quarter-Finals – 5th to 6th July

Semi-Finals – 9th to 10th July

Final – 14th July

Kit Stats

  • 48 Kits worn – 51 games
  • 28 Primary Kits (20 Default / 8 Variations)
  • 19 Secondary Kits (14 Default / 5 Variations)
  • 1 3rd Kits (1 Default)

Kit Log by Group

Group A

Group B

Group C

Group D

Group E

Group F

Kit Highlights

There was only one new Kit variation used in the Knockout Phase of the competition (15 Games) and that was by France, who wore alternative white shorts with their Secondary Kit against Spain in the Semi-Finals. The shorts were bespoke shorts and continued the pinstripe of the shirts into the shorts, much like the default blue pair.

This also meant that France wore their Secondary Kit 5 times in 6 games including all knockout games, and the only time they wore their Primary Kit was with alternative Blue shorts against Poland for an “All Blue” Kit look.

England only wearing their Primary Kit (in 2 variations) through-out the competition means they have now gone 6 years without wearing a change kit in a major finals tournament (19 games out of a possible 21), the last time they wore a change kit was in the World Cup 3rd / 4th Place Playoff game in 2018, a total of 2192 Days (and counting).

Along with France the only other team to wear a change kit in the knock out phase was Netherlands, who wore their secondary kit in their Last 16 Game against Romania.

Four Nations ended the tournament wearing 3 different Kit Variations, along with France, there was Poland (3 Kits in 3 Games), Austria and Italy both with 3 Kits in 4 games including to looks for their Primary Kits.

There we have it, Euro 2024 and all of the Kits Worn.

Let me know your thoughts and Kit Highlights in the comments below or over at @Kit_Geek

Related Articles:

Euro 2024: Kit Log Group Stages

Euro 2024: Kit Overview

England & The Euros: Kit History

Euro 2024: Kit Log Group Stages

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The Group Stages of Euro 2024 is now completed and 24 teams has become 16 as we reach the knock out stage of the competition. As we have a small break between the two stages of the competition it is time for me to take a look back at the kits worn in the Group Stages!

You can find a general overview of the Euro 2024 Kits here!

Fixtures

Round 1 – 14th June to 18th June

Round 2 – 19th June to 22nd June

Round 3 – 23rd June to 26th June

Kit Stats

  • 47 Kits worn – 36 games
  • 28 Primary Kits (20 Default / 8 Variations)
  • 18 Secondary Kits (14 Default / 4 Variations)
  • 1 3rd Kits (1 Default)

Kit Overview by Group

Group A

  • 6 Kits worn in Group
  • Scotland and Hungary in just one kit
  • Hungary in their registered Secondary kit in all 3 games
  • Germany / Switzerland in Secondary kits in their 2nd Group games

Group B

  • 8 Kits worn in the Group
  • Italy in 3 different Kit Looks in 3 games – 3 different pairs of shorts!
  • Croatia only team to wear just one kit

Group C

  • 8 Kits worn in the Group
  • Each team in 2 different Kits
  • England / Denmark in 2 variations of Primary Kit
  • Serbia used alternative red shorts / socks with Primary Kit

Group D

  • 10 Kits worn in the Group – Most in Tournament
  • Poland / Austria in 3 different kits in their 3 games
  • France in alternative blue shorts / socks in the one game in Primary Kit
  • Poland v Austria was only Primary v Primary kit game, however Poland wore variation with white shorts

Group E

  • 7 Kits worn in the Group
  • Romania the only team to wear just one kit
  • Belgium worn Primary against Romania (All Yellow) and Secondary against Ukraine (All Yellow)

Group F

  • 8 Kits in the Group
  • All teams in 2 Kits
  • Czechia in a kit mash ups in all their games

Kit Highlights

Italy wore two different pairs of white shorts in their opening two fixtures, with the alternative white shorts for their Secondary Kit have the red / green details that match the shirt and with their all blue look in their final group game meant that was three kits in three games, with three different pairs of shorts.

Another team to have two pairs of shorts of the same colour was France, with Blue Shorts as part of their default Secondary Kit with the matching pinstripe and they then wore alternative blue shorts with their Primary Kit in their final group match against Poland.

Belgium played both Romania and Ukraine in their Group, both playing in All Yellow… interestingly they went with their Primary Kit against Romania and decided to change to their Secondary Kit against Ukraine!

Czechia wore Kit Mash ups in all three of their games, wearing Primary Shorts with Secondary Kit in the first two games, then Secondary Shorts with Primary Kit for a Red / Blue / Blue look in their final match.

England have not set the tournament ablaze as yet, but one small highlight for me has been Jordan Pickford being in three different goalkeeper kits in the group games!

There were just four Nations that wore just one Kit, Scotland and Hungary (both in Group A), Croatia and Romania… the only one of these four teams to qualify to the Knock-out Rounds.

There we have it, the Group Stages of Euro 2024 and all of the Kits Worn, I will be back after the final to round up the Knock-out rounds.

Let me know your thoughts and Kit Highlights in the comments below or over at @Kit_Geek

Euro 2024: Kit Overview

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Euro 2024, Hosted by Germany Kicks off on Friday 14th June with the Hosts taking on Scotland in the opening fixture. The 17th Euros Tournament since they started in 1960 and will be contested by 24 Teams across 6 Groups with 4 Teams in each group, the 3rd Tournament to take this format.

I wanted to document the Kits used in the tournament here as a reference piece for those that want a quick reference Kit Guide.

There will be follow up post of the Kit Usage as we move through the tournament but lets kick off with a Kit Overview…

The Groups

Group A: Germany / Scotland / Hungary / Switzerland

Adidas are prominent in Group A, suppling 3 of the four teams with Puma suppling Switzerland.

Group B: Spain / Croatia / Italy / Albania

Adidas leading the group here, with two teams, Nike and one of the two Teams supplied by Macron (Albania) in this group. Albania also one three teams with a registered 3rd kit, they did manage to wear three different kits in their three group games in EURO 2016

Group C: Slovenia / Denmark / Serbia / England

Nike taking the lead in Group C, with two teams, Puma and the only Hummel kit of the tournament making up the rest of the group.

Group D: The Netherlands / France / Poland / Austria

Nike again leading a group, this time with 3 Teams, Puma making up the group with Austria.

Group E: Ukraine / Slovakia / Belgium / Romania

Joma are supplying two teams in the competition, they are both in Group E (Ukraine / Romania). Adidas and Nike being the two other manufacturers. Romania are one of the three teams that will have three kit options available to them.

Group F: Portugal / Czechia / Georgia / Turkey

Another group with 2 Nike Teams, Puma and the second Macron Nation in this group, interestingly both Countries (Georgia here) supplied by Macron have three different kits (Primary, Secondary, 3rd).

Kit Manufacturers Breakdown

There are just 6 Kit Manufacturers supplying Nations in Euro 2024, with Nike having the most Teams with 9 (37.5%) of teams. Hummel, the only team to provide just one Nation… of course, Denmark.

There will be regular updates across my Social Media Channels of the kits used over the tournament, with my regular deep dive looks after the Group Stages and then a Final Look at the end of the Competition.

There we have it, a reference piece to get you set for the Euros, let me know your thoughts and comments at @Kit_Geek and I hope you enjoy the tournament.

For more European Championship Content…

England & The Euros Kit History

England & The Euros: Kit History

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Euro 2024 is about to start, this is the 17th Euros Finals since they started in 1960 and will be hosted by Germany between 14th June and 14th July 2024.

The European Championship Finals have gone through several different formats since its inception, from just 4 teams for the initial tournaments up to 24 teams since 2016

  • 1960 – 1976, 4 Teams
  • 1980 – 1992, 8 Teams
  • 1996 – 2012, 16 Teams
  • 2016 – Onwards, 24 Teams

Here we have a look at the history of England’s Kits through out the competitions in preparation of this year’s tournament, I did something similar for World Cups originally in 2018 on this site – here and in more detail in Volume 5 of Kit Magazine for the 2022 World Cup.

England have qualifed for 10 out of 17 tournments and played a total of 38 games through their finals appearences.

Kit Overview of Euros

4 Team Tournament: 1968

8 Team Tournaments: 1980, 1988, 1992

16 Team Tournament: 1996, 2000, 2004, 2012

24 Team Tournament: 2016, 2021

Tournaments in Detail

1968 – This was only tournament where there was four teams that England Qualified for and was hosted in Italy, as then World Cup Holders, the tournament consisted of two semi-finals and then 3rd/4th Playoff game and Final.. England losing in their Semi-Final against Yugoslavia and then beating The Soviet Union in the 3rd/4th Place game. The kit worn in both games was the same as the kit worn in 1966, the classic England look of that time!

1980 – The next time England qualifed for the Euros was in 1980 again held in Italy, and this was the first tournament that saw of an expansion of teams qualifed doubling to 8 Teams, with group stages added for the first time. England were in Group B, played all their group games in their classic Admiral Primary Kit most famously used in World Cup 82. With a win, draw and loss in the group it meant that England did not go past the group stage, so it was just the three appearences of the Primary Kit, it is also worth noting that the kit did not contain any Admiral Branding as it was not permitted in tournaments at this time.

1988 – England followed a positive World Cup Campaign in 1986 by qualifying for 1988 Tournament in West Germany and England now in Umbro and will be in the Euros until 2016. It was not the most memorable competition on the pitch with three defeats in the three group games meaning they were rock bottom of their group, this probably reflects on the memories of the kit worn, they used their Primarty Kit in all three games and was one of the best Umbro Kits for The Three Lions and had Change and 3rd Kits in the same template.

1992 – The final 8 Team Tournament was also the first time that England qualifed for The Euros in consecutive tournaments, hosted by Sweden it was another campaign that England failed to go past the group stage however the team did manage to draw two games only losing against hosts Sweden which prevented their progression from the Group. It was another tournament that the Primary Kit was the only kit used, and was the same kit that was seen in World Cup ’90, this was the last time an England Kit was used in two major tournaments.

1996 – Euro 96 was the first of the next expansion of the tournament, with 16 Teams qualifying with 4 Groups of 4 teams and the introduction of Quarter-Finals for the first time. England were the Host Nation and coming off the back of failing to qualify for World Cup ’94 there was high expectation of the team to succeed on home soil.

England finished top of their Group and qualifed for the knock out stages for the first time in the Euros. The Primary Kit from Umbro was one that introduced a turquoise blue accent to the kit for the first time and was worn in each of the group games and the penalty win against Spain in the Quarter-Finals.

The Semi-Final was the first time that England used a change kit in Euros History and the first time a change had been used by the team in any major tournament since World Cup ’82. It was one of the most well known kits in England Football History, the Indigo / Grey change kit was one has always drawn a lot of attention and been written about so much over the years… however this was its only tournament appearance.

2000 – Euro 2000 was the first Euros to be Co-Hosted, with Belgium and The Netherlands welcoming 14 other countries to their shores. England took to the new millennium in a classic look that called back to the 60’s in it’s design and remains one of the most under-rated kits worn by The Three Lions. The Primary Kit was worn in their opening group game against Portugal and their final group game against Romania, both ending in 3-2 defeats, which meant they did not progress to the knock out rounds.

Their change was also used against Germany, who were also in their change kit for the game, this was the first time that England played in their traditional Red change colour in Euros Finals. The shirt itself is an interesting design being made of an almost wollen material, one that seems a world away for the structure of shirts made today.

2004 – The following Euros was held in Portugal and was in the middle of the “Golden Generation” of England team, with high expectations of the team and their Manager Sven-Göran Eriksson. In the Group they wore their Primary Kit twice and Change Kit once, qualifying from their group for the 2nd time they also wore their Primary Kit in their Penalty defeat against Hosts Portugal.

The Umbro Kit contained a lot more red then seen before, with red shoulder / sleeve taping on the shirt, this was the first England Kit that added a “Star” for their World Cup Victory in 1966, however it was placed on the sleeve of the shirt, not above the crest as normally place. It was also marketed as a reversable shirt, with the reverse being a leisure shirt alternative.

The Change Kit worn against Croatia was again the traditional red shirt but was paired with silver shorts and silver detailing, it also contained “playful” takes on the St.George’s Cross on the shoulders, with a design with paid tribute to the fans with flags drapped on their shoulders.

2012 – England failed to qualify for the 2008 tournament, so their next appearence was in 2012 in the competition hosted by Poland and Ukraine. This was also the final tournament that the team would be wearing Umbro as their Kit manufacturer and it was a new take on their Primary Kit for this tournament.

The kit being all white for the first time in it’s default look, in fact with the National Crest, logo and nameset all in red, there was no navy in the kit at all, also paired with a complementary goalkeeper kit in all red! This Kit was worn in the opening and closing group fixtures as well as the penalty defeat against Italy in the Quarter-Finals.

The Change kit worn against Sweden was another move away from the traditional red, with an All Navy Kit as part of the Tailored by Umbro range, although the default look was with Sky Blue Shorts it was the all navy when it came to an alternative look needed, this was the first time that England wore an alternative look in Euros Finals in their 24th game.

2016 – It was time for change again in Euro 2016, the teams qualifying increased to 24 with 6 Groups of 4 teams and the introduction of Last 16 Knock-out round, meaning teams getting to the final would play a total of 7 games, the same as World Cups. it was also change on the Kit front for England, with Nike now being the kit supplier for their 2nd Major Tournament after the World Cup 2014.

The Primary kit being one of the more controversial kits of The Three Lions’ Kit History, the Nike Vapor Template was a kit look that was paired with contrasting socks, in England’s case it was red socks… with Sky Blue sleeves, this was big change that not all fans were happy with!

For me, I love this kit, I love this template, it’s adventurous and challenges the standard designs!

The Primary Kit was worn in two of the group games and the shock defeat in the Last 16 game against Iceland, their Change Kit was worn against Slovakia which is the same template as the Primary in red and blue.

2020 – Due to the Covid Pandemic the 2020 tournament was postponed one year, so took place in 2021 and was held across Europe with 11 Countries / Cities hosting games, celebrating 60 years of the Tournament. England hosting games across the Group Stages and Knock-out rounds including both Semi-Finals and Final all at Wembley Stadium.

England, again with Nike went for a more classic look for their Kit, with Navy Blue shorts paired with a classic looking shirt and rounded collar, also a return of a central Crest for the first time since 2004.

England however did use alternative white shorts in all of their Group Games and contunied the All White look into their Knock-Out Last 16 game against Germany, it was not until the Quarter-Final match against Ukraine that they wore Navy Shorts, which would be for the first time in the Euros Since their Quarter-Final defeat against France in 2004, 17 years earlier. The same look was used in their Semi-Final victory against Denmark.

In the Final against Italy, it was a return to All White again, meaning they wore their Primary Kit through-out the tournament’s 7 Games, the first time a change kit was not worn by England in The Euros Finals since 1992.

Again, a final look at all the Kits worn in the 10 Tournaments and 38 Games of England at The Euros over the past 56 Years

  • Primary Kits: 33 (28 Default, 5 Variations) – 87% Kit Usage
  • Change Kits: 5 (4 Default, 1 Variation) – 13% Kit Usage

There we have it, let me know your thoughts and comments about England at the Euros over at @Kit_Geek

England v Scotland, not looking like England v Scotland

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On Tuesday 12th September Scotland will host England at Hampden Park in the 150th Anniversary Heritage Match to mark the first meeting between the two sides in 1872. This is part of the year of events from the Scottish FA to celebrate the history of the association.

The original match is recognised by FIFA as football’s first-ever international match, at The West of Scotland Cricket Club in Glasgow, in front of a crowd of 4000 People.

The kits of the first match set the tone of majority of the 115 meetings between the two nations with Scotland in dark blue shirts. (however, not the origin of the blue Scotland shirt) and England wore white shirts. England wore caps, while the Scots wore red cowls.

When you think of England v Scotland in terms of kits the traditional look is often considered as the following…

Scotland – Navy Blue Shirts / White Shorts / Red Socks (occasionly Navy Socks with red turnovers)

England – White Shirts / Navy Blue Shorts / White Socks

However….

As part of the qualification of the 2018 World Cup, Scotland and England were drawn together in Group F and the Kit Designs of that time from Nike (England) and Adidas (Scotland) were the following…

Scotland’s Primary Kit was paired with white sleeves and navy socks, with England’s Primary Kit having “Sky Blue” sleeves and Red socks… and created what was considered to be a sleeve clash between the two kits

So when the two teams met in their group games, secondary kits were used by the Away Country to give a new look for both games of this most historic of International fixtures…

On 11th November 2016, the match at Wembley (3-0 to England) gave us Scotland in their Pink Secondary Kit, with Black Shorts and Socks…

The return fixture at Hampden Park on June 10th 2017 (finishing 2-2), saw England in their secondary kit paired with Red Home socks to give an all red look for The Three Lions.

Both fixtures proved controversial in terms of kits, traditionalists on both sides expressed their disappointment on the choice of kits of the countries, however given the kit guidelines of the time there was no option for the primary kits to be used in this campaign.

An “honourable” mention to when the two countries met in Group D of Euro 2020 at Wembley on 18th June 2021, in the goal-less draw the teams wore just a single colour each, with England in All White and Scotland in All Navy, this due to the default Scotland look being all Navy at this Tournament, but those complaining at what happened in 2016/17 should take comfort in the fact that both nations wear in their Primary Shirt Colours.

For the match on Tuesday 12th September 2023, Scotland will wear their special 150th Anniversary Kit which was first worn in the Euro 2024 qualifying match against Cyprus on 25th March 2023, this will be the second and final appearence of this quite wonderful kit.

England, although wearing their current default Primary Kit from Nike for the actual match, they will be wear a one-off Pre-Match Shirt containing the National Crest worn in 1872…. many fans commenting that should this kit be worn in the actual game… I will let you decide your opionion on that one!

There we have it, England v Scotland, not looking like England v Scotland, let me know your thoughts in the comments below and of course all shares of this post are appreciated.

Kit Log – Euro 2016

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To coincide with my “Debut” Podcast appearence on the latest Kitted Out Podcast talking the Nike Vapor Template and Kits worn at Euro 2016, I thought I would pull together a Kit Log from that Tournament, so look back at the kits worn and some of the stats behind the kits.

Euro 2016, was hosted by France and change of format saw it become the largest European Championships to date, with the tournament being expanded to 24 teams from the 16 team that had been in place for the previous 5 tournaments dating back to Euro 96.

In terms of kits, the “Big Three” manufacturers, Nike, Adidas and Puma supplied 20 of the 24 teams qualifying for European Championships!

Kits Stats:

  • 24 Teams
  • 55 Different Kits Worn
  • 7 Kit Manufacters (Nike, Adidas, Puma, Joma, Macron, Umbro, Errea)
  • Adidas – 9 Countries
  • Nike – 6 Countries
  • Puma – 5 Countries
  • 10 Countries wore three different kit combinations
  • Only 3 Countries wore the same kit in all their games

Looking at bit more detail into the Countries kit choices, taking each Group at a time and their progress through the Tournament.

Group A

Euro16_A

Hosts and eventual finalists France, one of the six countries to wear the Nike Vapor Template only change from their first choice “Home” Kit once, this was kit that we discussed at length on Kitted Out Podcast where they could not wear their initial “Away” kit which broke the UEFA Equipment laws by having two different colour sleeves.  The Kit worn in the tournament, had almost grey looking sleeves instead of the red / blue in the original design.

Albania, who in their first ever tournament appearence also created a first by wearing Home, Away and 3rd choice kits in their three group games, something that I do not believe we have seen in an International Tournament before with Countries normally having just two kit options.

Group B

Euro16_B

England, another team with Nike Vapor Template and one that was seen by many to be a controversial choice. I am probably in the minority of England fans that liked it, it was something different and I always like to see experimentation in Kit design and this was possibly Nike’s biggest risk in the International market. The Home and Away kits were both used through the tournament but unfortunately this kit will likely always be remembered for exit at the hands of Iceland.

Wales, who reached the Semi Finals had one of the standard Adidas Templates for their home kit, however their away kit was something different with the use of the fluorescent trim really popping from the two toned grey hoops.

Group C

Euro16_C

Ever efficient Germany wore their Home kit in all of their six appearances, with the only variation being the use of white socks in their Quarter Final match against Italy.

Ukraine, one of the three teams (All wearing Yellow) to wear the same kit throughout the Tournament.

Poland, wearing probably the least adventurous Nike Vapor Template, no risks in colour choice, no alternative sock choice just the standard colour choices in place and an away kit that many England fans would have happily swapped for one used by the Three Lions!

Group D

Euro16_D

Group D is all about Turkey for me, another Nike Vapor Template and one of the more interesting designs, with a mesh like appearance in the shirt blending to black shorts / socks. They wear also one of the teams to wear three different kit combinations in their three group games, mashing up home shorts and socks with their away kit, for me the best use of Vapor Template seen on show!

An honourable mention to Spain and their away kit which contains an interesting pattern on chest and shoulder, which is to reflect the heat map of their winning goal at Euro 2012 scored by Fernando Torres.

Group E

Euro16_E

It was all about Belgium’s away kit for me in Group E, my favourite kit of the tournament and one that paid homage to the Belgian cycling team with the Belgian Flag being used as a chest band across the cyan shirt! It was used three times in their six games with both black and cyan shorts, both looks working in my eyes!

Italy (as Belgium) used three different kits in their six games, with two home kit combinations used, their stylish away kit only used on their opening game.

Group F

Euro16_F

Tournament winners Portugal, the final team to wear the Nike Vapor Template kit, also wore three different kits in their six game with their home kit being one of the best fits in colour combination of the template.

Iceland’s kit produced by Errea deserve a call out, not only a tournament to remember for their progress to the Quarter Finals but a simple, yet unique kit with the use of a single stripe made their kits stand out from some of the generic templates used by several nations.

Austria wore three different kit combinations in their only three appearances at Euro 2016.

My favourtie 5 Kits worn

Belgium Away (with black and cyan shorts)

Turkey Home

Euro16_TURh

Italy Away

Euro16_ITA

Turkey Away with Black shorts

Euro16_TURa

Iceland Away

Euro16_ICE

Euro 2016 Fixtures

An overview of the kits worn by tournament fixtures.

10th June 2016 to 18th June 2016 (Group games)

Euro16_1

19th June 2016 to 3rd July 2016 (Final Group Games to Quarter Finals)

Euro16_2

6th July 2016 to 10th July 2016 (Semi Finals and Final)

Euro16_3

Well there we have, let me know your favourite kits worn through out Euro 2016 and of course make sure you check out the latest Podcast from Kitted Out discuss these kits and The Nike Vapour Template.

A final thank you to Ollie from Kitted Out for intiviting me on to his Podcast and giving me an opportunity to talk about football kits, please use the link above to check out Kitted Out back catalogue, some wonderful football kit conversations to listen too.