Tag: world cup

World Cup ’22 Kit Log – Group Stage Round 1

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The World Cup is well and truly underway, we have now seen each of the 32 Nations take to the field, so time to have a look at the kits worn so far by each of the teams.

I am still not 100% sure whether the “Home” and “Away” kit labels are completely correct when it comes to International Tournaments, I will refer to them as “Primary” and “Secondary” choice kits.

Groups A and B

A few stats….

For the total of 32 kit appearances, we have seen “Primary” Kits (and variations) used 87.5% and “Secondary” kits (and variations) used 12.5% of the time, with only four Nations in their secondary kit!

Primary – 22

Primary variations – 6 (Ecuador, USA, Wales, Argentina, Spain, Cameroon)

Secondary – 3

Secondary variations – 1 (Saudi Arabia) 

Groups C and D

A part from the Day 1 and Day 2 (which totalled 4 games), we are seeing 4 games a day, so the tournament is motoring along now and it is great to see the kits finally on display.

Adidas wearing coming into the tournament with some of the best kits on show and they have not disappointed in action, with Japan being a particular highlight. One downside from the Adidas Kit point of view was seeing Spain in all red, rather than the default navy shorts and socks, from what I understand this was driven by FIFA and both Spainish Federation and Adidas preferring to use navy in this game.

One thing that seems to have reduced from recent World Cups, is single colour kits… so far there has been only 5 games which we have seen both teams in a single colour for their full kit (I am including Senegal in this who do have a multi-coloured chest chevron), I hope this is something that continues through the rest of the tournament.

Groups E and F

Canada appearing in their first World Cup since 1986 have been dealt a bit a raw deal with their Kit Situation, based on the contract they currently have with Nike means they are the only team at this World Cup that are not in a “New” Kit but one they have had in place since 2021. I am sure this will change in the next Tournament where the Canadians are Co-Hosts.

Groups G and H

Switzerland v Cameroon gave us the unusual site of red v green, often not allowed due to impacts of colourblind supporters / viewers, the contrast in this particular match up was given by just yellow Cameroon socks, normally its the shorts that are changed to give the contrast between the kits.

Overall kit highlights for me…

Argentina v Saudi Arabia Kit Match up, the best so far for me.. Argentina in alternative black socks, Saudi Arabia in Away shirt / Home shorts and socks mash up, what’s not to like here!

The subtle detail in the Wales Shirt… yes it is a template shirt but that does not make it bad thing, the detail works really well and give the shirt a lttle more depth!

Japan’s Primary Kit, a favourite amougst the Kit Community and it’s clear to see why.. the detail in the shirt works well and the use of red trim and yellow numbers also gives the kit a different feel…. could the pattern also be on the back of the shirt, maybe… but we can’t have it all!

Nike have received some critisim for the kits they have produced for the World Cup but the France Primary Kit is one of the best on their roster. I tweeted about how nice it would have been for the boots to be gold here as well, creating a fully complementary kit look with the gold details.

Well, why not… what an image to capture the moment and the kit…!!

Round 1 of games is now complete, what are your favourite kits on show and will we see more variations of kits through out round 2 of games? Let me know in the comments below of over at @Kit_Geek on Twitter

England x Nike – 2022

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After months of speculation, rumour and DH Gate Knock offs, we have now seen the release of the Nike Kits for England for 2022/23, in effect the World Cup 2022 Kits.

I have thoughts…. I will always save final judgement of a kit when it is seen in action for the first time, however I did want to take some time and have look at the Kits as they have been presented to us so far!

Home

The home kit at first glance takes a lot of influence from the Umbro Home Kit worn between 1995-96, famously known as the kit worn at Euro 96, this is mainly due to the introduction of a light (almost turquoise) blue as one of the key detail of the kit.

The biggest element of change and controversy to the shirt, is with the shoulders and the introduction of blue in this part of the shirt, here is where for me the shirt takes more influence from 1980-83 Admiral shirt, worn at the 1982 World Cup… interesting one of the most loved shirts in England kit history but this one has initially not gone down as well! It’s an interesting design choice and something different in an England kit, these are always positive elements in my eyes, so I am falling on the side “Love It” of what is going to a “Marmite” shirt for many people.

The shorts are a lighter shade of blue that we have seen with previous kits, although still on the darker shade of the blue spectrum there is a significant change.  Matched with the light blue trim, again giving us those Euro 96 vibes.

Away

Immediately, thoughts go to 1990 and the away kit of the time… in fact that was the registered away shirt between 1990 and 1993, however was not used at Italia 90 and was not worn in 1993… but back to the present…

The shirt is clearly an adaptation of that Umbro shirt, with changes in the colour elements and for me this is what makes the kit a lot more interesting, the way that the light blue element seen in the home kit is also used in the away, the National Crest being blue really works for me the trim in the navy blue collar and the Nike “Tick” all taking this blue and creating something new in England’s Kit History.

Red shorts, returning with the red shirt means a return to all red as the default away look, which will be the first time this is the case since 1994-95 Away kit, yes we have seen all red many times of the years but this has always been alternative shorts used.

My final thoughts, these are interesting kits whether you like them or not one new in design with more subtle nods to the past, the other is a more traditional looking shirt and possible playing to “crowd” as an almost direct copy of kit it is paying tribute too, in my opinion treating these kits as a set Nike have given us a balance to their offering for their latest offering to England National Team and I look forward to seeing them in action.

One last thing… if you do not like them, their lifecycle will be fairly short… there will new kits in 18 months’ time!

Let me know your thoughts over at @Kit_Geek or in the comments below.

Harry Kane / England…. 48 & Counting

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On Monday 15th November 2021 the England Captain Harry Kane led his team to World Cup Qualification with emphatic 10-0 victory over San Marino, who themselves sporting their 90th Anniversay Kit based on their traditional flag. In the process of this victory, Kane bagged himself a four goal “haul” and becoming the joint 3rd highest goalscorer of the England National Men’s team.

  • Wayne Rooney – 53 Goals in 120 Games
  • Sir Bobby Charlton – 49 in 106
  • Gary Lineker – 48 in 80
  • Harry Kane – 48 in 67

Now, with me enjoying Kits and the stats behind the kits, I wanted to see a breakdown of these goals and the kits that were being worn by Kane.

Overview

Harry Kane made his debut on 27th March 2015 against Lithuania and marked his debut by scoring within 80 seconds of coming on as a second half substitute. The Kit England where wearing that evening was the All White Kit first introduced for the 2014 World Cup.

Harry Kane scoring his first England Goal

In the six and half years (and 66 caps) since that spring evening, Kane has worn 9 different England Kits used in a total of 14 Kit variations, which include the controversial Nike Vapor Templates used for Euro 2016 – One I actually quite like and thought it worked well in both Home and Away forms (but thats a discussion for another time), one 3rd Kit and a variety of different variations of the Home and Away kits.

Breakdown

  • Home Kits – 4 Kits used, 21 Goals Scored
  • Home Kit Variations – 3 Kits used, 13 Goals Scored
  • Away Kits – 3 Kits used, 7 Goals Scored
  • Away Kit Varations – 3 Kits used, 5 Goals Scored
  • 3rd Kit – 1 Kit, 2 goals

Highlights

The Kit that Kane has scored the most goals in is the first choice Home Kit used between 2018 and 2019, including the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Kane netted a total of 12 goals in this kit, including three Hat-Tricks against Panama (in the World Cup), Bulgaria and Montenegro in the Euro 2020 Qualifying campaign. There were also another 4 goals scored with this kit being used with white shorts.

The England Captain scoring a Hat-Trick against Panama at Russia 2018

The Nike Vapor Template has seen 3 different incarnations for England with Kane scoring in all three kits and counting the variations of socks that have been used a total of 5 different Kit Variations. In total Kane scored 9 goals in these kits

The 5 variations of Vapor Template used by England, all of which Kane scored in

2021 has seen Kane break the record for the most goals scored by an Englishman in a Calendar Year, with 16 goals in his 16 Appearences, this included 7 goals in his last two appreances, the final two qualiyfing matches for World Cup 2022, both games seeing all his goals scored in the first half of each match. In total in 2021, Kane scored 11 goals in the home kit, 5 in the default look with navy shorts and 6 in the all white look, the popular all blue away kit has seen 5 goals netted by the England Captain.

Kane netting a first half Hat-Trick against Albania, November 2021

If Harry Kane keeps this level of scoring up, the record is surely insight within the next year, a World Cup year… I hope to update this when the record is broken.

What are you favourite Kits worn by Harry Kane for England, let me know in the comments below of over at https://twitter.com/kit_geek

Diego Maradona – My tribute

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Wednesday 25th November 2020 the footballing world lost one of it’s most iconic and gifted players to ever take to the field and I wanted to pay my own small tribute to him.

Diego Armando Maradona, as he was in my Panini 1986 World Cup sticker album was footballing royality, he almost single handedly won a World Cup for his country and a spearheaded Napoli to their only two Serie A titles.

His 21 year career saw play for six different clubs in three countries, making 588 apperances and scoring 312 goals, on top of that his 91 caps and 34 goals for his beloved Argentina and appeared in four World Cups.

Love or hate him, he was a player whose ability and impact to the game we love should be respected, thank you for memories Diego…..

Maradona lifting the World Cup at Mexico City 1986
Playing against Manchester United in March 1984 in European Cup Winner’s Cup
Playing for Napoli in one of the change kits from 1990/91

There has hundred’s of tributes to Diego Maradona, what are you favourite memories??

World Cup Kit Log, Group Stage Round 3

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48 games….. 8 completed groups…. 32 teams and 62 kits used….!!

We have reached the end of the Group Stage with the final rounds completed and the biggest take away for me in this, is that 30 of 32 teams have worn both their kits.  There has been some interesting choices in using the “Second” choice kits for clashes and in some cases both team turning to their “Second” kits when there would have no real clash in using their “First” choice kits, FIFA or Manufacturer’s marketing their products, we will probably never know.

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Kits used for the first time in the Competition in this round:

  • Russia, Second kit
  • Spain, First kit
  • Morocco, Second kit
  • France, Second kit
  • Peru, Second kit
  • Germany, Second kit

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I want to call out the Germany kit here, this kit really is magnificent and for me one of the best kits seen produced in the recent years and unfortunately due to the team’s performance at this World Cup will always be remembered as the kit that was worn when they were knocked out the Competition

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We are still yet to see the full Colombia first choice kit, both appearances of the shirt have been matched with white shorts and socks, a surprising choice as not sure the blue shorts/red socks would have clashed too much with the all green kit of Senegal.

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Japan and Poland meet in their final Group games, a game that saw the only two teams to wear their “First” choice shirts for all three games in the group, however Poland did use white shorts, to create an all white kit which was a variation from their home kit, leaving Japan on their own as the only team to use one full kit for the Group Stage.

Round 3 kit highlights:

  • Germany’s kit, a thing of beauty that will now be remember for the wrong reasons
  • Japan wearing the full kit for all three games, only team to do so.
  • Finding out that teams have to nominate bib colours as well each game

My favourite kit of the round is the Germany kit.

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To see my look at the previous games in the Group Stage check these posts out…

World Cup Kit Log, Group Stage Round 1

World Cup Kit Log, Group Stage Round 2

World Cup Kit Log, Group Stage Round 2

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In what seems to be a flash of the eye we have reached the end of round 2 of the group games in the 2018 World Cup is over, no more 3 games spread over the day!

Looking at the kits used, the biggest thing that stands out for me is 24 out of the 32 teams have worn both there kits and there has been question as to reason that Countries have made these changes, especially as in the past the same teams have met and been able to wear their first choice kits.  Is this also a marketing ploy by kit manufacturers to maximise sales of kits or stricter FIFA ruling in terms of kit usage or maybe a combination of both….

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Russia’s socks were changed from the first game, on of my highlights of the first round of games (World Cup Kit Log, Group Stage Round 1) this was reported due to the top of the sock would clash with Egypt’s socks.  Another team that used their “First” choice kit for a second time with a variation was France, who wore a striking combination against Peru, with the dark blue shorts combined with the dark blue shirt and red socks for one of the complete kit highlights of the tournament so far for me.

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Nigeria used their much talked about “first” choice kit, this really is something completely new and I think the reason why it works so well and looks great in action. I also really like the Sweden “second” choice kit, the rich blue and yellow complimented each other perfectly and really stood out as a great kit.

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The highlight of these games for me was Mexico’s kit, a stunning kit, the deeper shades of Red and Green used in a classic style and design not often seen with the two horizontal stripes on the shirt, just stands out as a class kit.

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My final highlight is Colombia, that stunning blue kit based from the kit worn by many teams in 90s but interestingly not Colombia as far as I can tell, match with the bright orange trim, orange tonal badge, throw in the sea of yellow, blue and red in the crowd it just looks amazing all round and then David Ospina’s goalkeeper kit which is a call back to the Rene Higuita’s kit, a black kit with purple, green detailing and pink tonal badge…. Colombia creating a festival of colour!

Round 2 Kit Highlights:

  • France’s variation of “first” choice kit against Peru
  • Mexico’s kit… stunning!
  • Sweden in Blue
  • Colombia and all the colours….!

I am going to split my favourite kit of this round of game between two… including a goalkeeper kit… Mexico and the Colombian Goalkeeper kit.

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And so on to Round 3 of group games….!

World Cup Kit Log, Group Stage Round 1

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The World Cup is well and truly underway, we have now seen each of the 32 teams take to the field, so time to review the kits worn so far by each of the teams.

I am still not 100% sure whether the “Home” and “Away” kit labels are completely correct when it comes to International Tournaments, I think for the time being I will refer to them as “First” and “Second” choice kits.

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A few stats….

For the total of 32 kit appearances, we have seen “First” Kits (and variations) used 66% and “Second” kits (and variations) used 34% of the time.

First Choice – 15

First Choice variations – 6 (Egypt, France, Denmark, Croatia, Costa Rica, Colombia)

Second Choice – 8

Second Choice variations – 3 (Uruguay, Argentina, England) 

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It is nice to see some of these kits finally in action, the Adidas kits have stood out to me, in particular the Argentina kit and the Mexico kit, I also want to call out the Iceland kit here as well, whether it was the contrast with the black Argentinian kit or the bright white kit on a summer’s day but it really seemed to work, coupled with a goalkeeper kit that is of the same template in red, the package just works for me….. well played Errea.

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England went for an all red kit, the first time they have worn an away kit (which also was all red) at a World Cup since 2010, to be fair that was only three games! I thought this looked great, the red shorts and in particular the red tonal badge and Nike “swoosh”, really worked and gave the kit a more modern balance in terms of colour.

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Overall kit highlights for me…

  • Russia’s socks
  • Argentina v Iceland…. (maybe the new Scotland v Denmark in Mexico 86 for World Cup kit match up perfection… I have gone too far, I know)
  • Mexico’s kit
  • England all in red

For me, my favourite kit on show so far, is this combination of “Second” choice shirt and socks, with “First” choice away shorts from Argentina

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Round 1 of games is now complete, what are your favourite kits on show and will we see more variations of kits through out round 2 of games.

England Kits at World Cups

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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.

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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)

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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.

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

Kit Log – World Cup, Korea/Japan 2002

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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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.

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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.

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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).

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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?