Football kit manufacturers: Trends, graphs and charts

As you probably know, we're rather fond of football kit design here at The Football Attic. We like nothing better than making broad sweeping statements about the brilliance of a particular kit, especially when we know we haven't got a clue what we're talking about.

What makes football kit design such a fascinating subject is the sheer number of great designs that have been produced over so many decades. In England, this began in earnest during the mid-1970's when production techniques improved and a burgeoning sense of commercialism finally dawned.

So many great manufacturers are associated with the football kits of English football - Adidas, Nike, Admiral, Umbro... the list goes on, but we wondered which ones have provided the most kits for top flight teams since the mid-1970's, and what the trends have been in the popularity of those manufacturers.

To find out the answers to these and many other questions, we plundered as much information as we could find from the website that's unparalleled in its knowledge of the subject, Historical Football Kits. Our research threw up a number of interesting findings.

The early days: 1974-1980

It's fair to say that before the 1970's, football kits were made to distinguish the colours of one team from another and very little else. Football kits were looked upon as 'equipment' rather than fashion items, but that was all to change.

That change has often been attributed to the Leicester-based firm of Admiral, and it's not hard to see why. In 1975, the classic 'tramlines' design arrived to bemuse and amaze the fans of Coventry City, Dundee and Wales, and by 1976 their logo seemed to be cropping up everywhere. They weren't, however, the domineering force in the English First Division.

Where our story begins in the 1974/75 season, it was Umbro that had the lion's share of all the top team's contracts, providing kit for eight of the 22 clubs. By the end of that campaign, the number had increased to nine because QPR had switched allegiance from Admiral in late January.

First Division 1974/75: Kit manufacturers
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Details of the kit manufacturers providing First Division kits are somewhat sketchy for 1974/75. More than half the club's suppliers are unknown, but we do know that Admiral only had three top clubs on their books at the end of that season - Stoke City, Luton Town and Leeds United. By the end of the decade, this figure had doubled, but Umbro were also adding more clubs to its portfolio. During the 1976/77 season, they provided the kit for 13 of the 22 teams including the top four - Liverpool, Manchester City, Ipswich Town and Aston Villa.

Queens Park Rangers 1976/77

It was in this season that Adidas made their First Division début well after their logo had appeared on shirts during the 1974 World Cup. Queens Park Rangers have the distinction of wearing the first Adidas kit in the top division and indeed they were the only club that did so at the time, but in 1977/78 another four teams wore the German marque - Middlesbrough, Birmingham City, Ipswich Town and Nottingham Forest.

In the period between 1974 and 1980, the only other companies providing kit for First Division teams were Bukta and Le Coq Sportif, but they were struggling to make much of an impact during this time. Bukta, based in Manchester, were the suppliers of team kit for Newcastle United during much of the 1970s and also had their logo on West Ham's kit during the 1975 FA Cup Final. As for French firm Le Coq Sportif, their arrival in the First Division didn't come until the 1978/79 season when they provided the kit for Derby County. Tottenham and Aston Villa would soon follow suit when the 1980's finally arrived.

A sign of things to come: 1980-1989

In the latter half of the 1970's, only five companies had made football kits for England's First Divison teams. In the decade that followed, that number had increased to 14 but be in no doubt - Adidas and Umbro were far and away the main players. Admiral's star was on the wane and as new names like Hummel and Patrick began to get some traction, a few 'club brands' started to appear on the radar too.

Between the two of them, Umbro and Adidas provided the kit for 18 of the 22 First Division teams in the 1980/81 season. Only Coventry City and Leeds United (Admiral), Southampton (Patrick) and Tottenham Hotspur (Le Coq Sportif) bucked the trend, but as the 1980's progressed, more and more clubs were tempted to try alternative suppliers.

First Division: 1980-89 - Umbro & Adidas v The Rest
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Coventry City, in particular, adopted a different approach when they ditched the Admiral tramlines in 1981. Their famous 'Talbot' kit was the product of a company called Talbot Sports, and in the 1986/87 season they fashioned their own supply deal again by plumping for kits made by Triple S Sports. As luck would have it, the striped Coventry home kit ended up being worn during a successful 1987 FA Cup Final against Tottenham, but it was a one-season wonder and was replaced for 1987/88 by new strips made by Hummel.

Danish company Hummel had started making First Division in-roads after some useful exposure during Euro '84. Their clean, distinctive, Arsenal-style shirt had been worn by the Danes right through to their exit in the semi-finals of the competition, and it was in the following season of 1984/85 that Norwich City became the first club wear the famous double chevrons. By the end of the decade, they'd be joined by Southampton, Aston Villa, Tottenham and, of course, Coventry.

First Division 1980/81 - 1988-89: Kit manufacturers per season
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The arrival of lesser-known names like Henson, Scoreline, Strike and Spall in the late-80's was a portent of things to come. Adidas and Umbro's combined share of all the First Division kit deals was down to just 50% in 1988/89, and in the 1990's things got even worse for them as the race to supply outfits for the top clubs got even hotter.

Diversity: 1990-1999

Taken as a whole, the final decade of the 20th Century saw Adidas almost disappear from the English First Division football kit landscape. Having supplied outfits for as many as seven or eight of the 22 top-flight clubs during some seasons of the 1980's, they were down to just one team - Liverpool - in 1994/95. On two occasions later in the decade, only Newcastle United were on the German company's books.

This surprising fall from grace can perhaps be attributed to the growing prominence of the Champions League as Adidas' main priority and the need to have its kits on show there. The increase in football kit manufacturers in the UK was also growing - 27 used during the 1990's - but initially at least, Umbro didn't seem affected by either issue. Between 1990 and 1993, they were making the kits for almost half of the First Division's teams, including Everton, Nottingham Forest, Chelsea and both of the Sheffield clubs.

First Division/Premier League 1974-2014: Kit contracts for Adidas and Umbro
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By 1995, however, even Umbro were seeing their dominant grip on the market weakened. New companies were providing smart, stylish alternatives for England's top clubs; Asics, Puma, Reebok and even Nike wanted a piece of the action as the traditional giants of the kit world were forced to take a lower billing.

Apart from Umbro, there was one other company that made more First Division kits than Adidas - Pony. The American footwear firm arrived on the scene in 1993 with kits for Southampton and West Ham that both featured prominent 'reverse tick' elements on the upper part of the shirt. The tick came from Pony's logo, and while it looked fine on the West Ham kit, Southampton's red and white stripes struggled to form a harmonious complement with it.

Yet again smaller companies were snapping up the few crumbs that were left after the giants had fed. Clubhouse and View From were two names used by QPR in the early 1990's; Swindon's only season in the top flight saw them wear a kit by Loki; Avec came in to lend Sunderland a hand near the end of the decade, while Crystal Palace went for Nutmeg in 1994/95.

First Division/Premier League 1974-2014 - Kit manufacturers per season
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More so than ever, the fragmentation of the kit supply market was providing more choice for clubs and ever-more imaginative kit designs for fans to savour, but the 21st Century would see the trend slow down as the big companies returned to reclaim their territory.

Contraction: 2000 onwards

In 2004/05 and 2006/07, the 20 clubs of the Premier League in England used 14 different football kit providers - the greatest number in any one season. Adidas and Umbro were still there, but now Nike were pushing hard to join them at the top table. Not far behind were Reebok, a perpetual partner and shirt sponsor for Bolton Wanderers but now also a supplier of kit for Liverpool and Manchester City. Kappa and Puma were also a familiar sight in the Premier League around this time, while Le Coq Sportif were making something of a comeback too.

So many kit makers for so many clubs, and yet that all changed at a stroke at the start of the 2007/08 season. During the previous campaign, Umbro made kit for only one Premier League team - Everton. When the next season began, they had six clubs to their name - Birmingham, Blackburn, Everton, Sunderland, West Ham and Wigan.

Several kit companies disappeared from view that Premier League season - Airness, Diadora, Hummel, Joma, JJB and Lonsdale all found themselves without a contract for one of England's top teams, while Reebok's portfolio was reduced from three teams to just one - Bolton. Quite how or why Umbro had managed to snap up so many contracts is unclear, but their diamond-strewn designs of 2007/08 were certainly a common sight - even on the England kit of the time.

Click to see larger version

Umbro's dominance contracted again a few seasons later as Adidas and Nike consolidated their own exposure in the Premier League as once again a wider variety of manufacturers returned. Xara, Carbrini and Macron all wrote their names into the football kit history books, but a notable divide was slowly forming between the big companies and the smaller ones.

These days, we've come to accept this as the ongoing norm. On the one hand, Adidas, Umbro, Nike, Puma and Reebok struggling for overall superiority, well established and proven to create football kits of a high quailty. On the other hand, smaller and newer companies trying to make a positive impression but having to accept a limited impact among England's footballing elite.

Yet with this coming season, all that is about to change again. What Umbro did in 2007/08, Adidas have done on an even bigger scale for 2013/14, for they will start the next campaign providing kit for nine of the top 20 clubs in England. It is by far the strongest attempt by the German company to dominate the Premier League, and in the weeks to come you'll be seeing Chelsea, Fulham, Hull City, Southampton, Stoke City, Sunderland, Swansea, West Brom and West Ham wearing those three famous stripes.

How have Adidas forced their way to the top of the tree with such ruthlessness? In part, the answer lies with the disappearance of two of their main rivals. Reebok's final season in the Premier League came in 2011/12 when Bolton Wanderers were relegated, but this came seven years after Reebok became a subsidiary of Adidas themselves. As for Umbro, they were bought out by Nike in 2008 and have since been sold on to Iconix Brand Group during the last year. Whether we'll see the Umbro diamonds again in future remains to be seen, but there are some encouraging signs beginning to appear.

With two such big names no longer competing for a share of the market, Adidas has seen an opening and taken advantage. Quite what you may think of this year's Adidas kits would be interesting to know, but it seems the football kit landscape - in the Premier League at least - will be a less varied (perhaps less interesting) place this season. With only three companies - Adidas, Nike and Puma - owning 75% of all the top clubs' kit deals, the likelihood for diverse design sadly seems all but doomed. We can only hope for better in the not too distant future.

Total number of 'kit seasons' for all manufacturers - 1974-2014
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Kit manufacturers used by First Division/Premier League teams (1974-2014)
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With special thanks to Dave Moor at Historical Football Kits for his help in providing the data for this article.

The Greatest England Home Kit Ever 1965-2013: The Result

After nearly six weeks of voting, we now know what YOU chose as the greatest England home kit worn in the modern era.

We can now reveal that with just over a third of the 169 votes we received, the winner was Admiral's England kit worn between 1980 and 1983 (below), most memorably seen during the 1982 World Cup.

Yet again this bold, iconic design has found favour with football fans of all kinds, easily proving itself more popular than other England kits worn during classic World Cup campaigns.

And there was more good news for Admiral as their previous home kit from the 1974 to 1980 era finished joint second in our poll, level with Umbro's World Cup '90 kit. Both received 19 votes, far less than the 57 picked up by our winning kit.

Half of all the kits featured in our poll received three votes or less including the current edition made by Nike (2) and Umbro's kit between 2010 and 2012 which was the only one not to receive any votes at all. This latter point is all the more bewildering when you consider it was the first England home kit to feature the bright blue shorts last seen on Admiral's winning kit from the 1982 World Cup.

No doubt further discussion will ensue about the qualities and shortcomings of our winning England kit - in fact we know for certain it will because we'll be discussing it in our 11th podcast which will be recorded in the next week or two. Until then, here's how the voting went, and of course we'd love to hear your thoughts about any of the kits involved - particularly those you voted for!

Click for larger view

Great Tracksuits of Our Time: No.15

Manchester City and Wolverhampton Wanderers (1974):

In the world of international fashion, bright citrus-coloured pants have rarely, if ever, been considered as acceptable. The same can be said of sky blue two-piece outfits with red trimmings.

Luckily the world of football doesn't concern itself with international fashion, and this undoubtedly allowed the 1974 League Cup Final to be one of the most colourful occasions ever seen at Wembley. And that was before the match got started.

As the two teams walked out onto the pitch for the big match, 97,000 fans could have been excused for whipping out their sunglasses and shielding their eyes from the glare.

On the one hand, Wolverhampton Wanderers, boldly striding forth in black tracksuit tops and 'old gold' pants; on the other, Manchester City, their opponents, a vision in summer blue with the customary stripy Umbro trim in red. If Admiral epitomised the excesses of late-1970’s football kit design, Umbro preceded it with their Wembley show costumes.

Indeed this was an occasion when Umbro could look from afar with great pride. Both teams were wearing their apparel, both sets of tracksuit tops adorned by the Umbro logo of the time on the right breast. As for the all too stark effect of Wolves' jet black zip-up jackets and glowing yellow-orange bottoms, it was certainly daring, to say the least.

But let's not forget the small details on the top: the three leaping wolves of the club badge on the left breast, the substantial collar that Eric Cantona could have made an entire repertoire out of, and the word 'Wolves' emblazoned across the back... it was enough to bring a tear to the eye of Wulfrunians everywhere.

Less garish but just as bright were the City boys, Denis Law, Mike Summerbee and Rodney Marsh amongst them. Their tracksuit bore a closer resemblance to their playing kit, yet it too allowed for a considerable degree of flare and style.

Looking virtually the same as the garb worn by the England national team at the time (save for a different shade of blue) Ron Saunders' men looked quietly confident in their smart outfits. The two-tone red waist bands, leg and shoulder stripes and slim collar were a symbol of Umbro's 'tailored' approach to football kit manufacture, and with this in mind we can't imagine too many City fans complaining about the use of United's colours to round off the overall look of this tracksuit.

As far as we can make out, there was no name on the back of the tops, so apart from the aforementioned details and the club badge on the front, that was it - but what a fine look it was. If only it had spurred Manchester City onto an equally fine result on the day.

In the end, it was the dark destroyers in black tracksuit tops that won the 1974 League Cup Final. A 2-1 triumph for Bill McGarry's team was, amongst other things, a victory for loud and audacious colour schemes over toned-down smartness, but those clever designers at Umbro wouldn't have minded either way. For them, this was surely an occasion when they couldn't lose - no matter what the outcome.

Want more tracksuit-related memories? Try these on for size...

• No.14: Ipswich Town and Arsenal (1978)
• No.13: Norway (1986)
• No.12: Wales (1976)
• No.11: Borussia Mönchengladbach (circa 1976)
• No.10: England (1986)
• No.9: Argentina (1978)
• No.8: Derby County (1978)
• No.7: Coventry City (1978)
• No.6: Brighton & Hove Albion (1983)
• No.5: Arsenal (1989)
• No.4: John Bond special
• No.3: Leeds United (1974)
• No.2: Liverpool (1977)
• No.1: Slovan Bratislava (1976)

The Greatest England Home Kit Ever 1965-2013

So now we know. The new England home kit by Nike has been launched and whether we like it or not, we're stuck with it for a whole year. It can now take it's place alongside all the other England home kits from recent history where it can be judged on its merits and flaws...

...and that's why we're here - to determine the Greatest England Home Kit Since 1965. You'll have seen our recent posts reflecting on the high and low points of England home kit design, but now it's time for all of you to rate the very best outfit of the last 48 years.

Here's what we'd like to do. First, spend a while gazing longingly at the graphic above showing all of the last 18 England home kits (clicking on the image brings up a larger version - right-click and 'Save As' while it's on the screen to retain a full-size version).

Dwell on your initial gut reaction upon seeing them for the first time. Try not to get wrapped up in the successes or failures associated with the team wearing them - retain balance and clarity as you weigh up the virtues of each design, for it's the design we'd like you to think about here.

Once you've done all that, arrive at an answer to the following question:

Which is your favourite England home kit since 1965?

When you think you're certain in your judgement, use the form below to register your vote. It's as simple as that.

We'll run our poll from now until midnight on 30 June 2013, after which we'll get to find out which England home kit is the best that's been worn for very nearly half a century.

Thanks in advance for taking part, and please feel free to comment on any of the kits shown in the graphic above.

UPDATE:

This poll has now CLOSED. Many thanks to all of you that took part in the voting.

Want to know which kit was voted the best? Visit our results page and find out!

Retro Round-Up - 17 May 2013

After the relentless parade of FA Cup articles we brought you last week on The Football Attic, this week's been a little quieter for us post-wise, but fortunately there are lots of other like-minded folk on the interweb that have been doing their bit for the football nostalgia cause. Here's a selection of the best we could find for your viewing pleasure.

Hull City's tumultuous promotion campaign this season prompts The Two Unfortunates to remember a similarly successful time for The Tigers back in 1965/66 - read about it here...

Double Diamond works wonders - even for under-age kids! (Well it does if the double diamond in question belongs to Umbro, according to Got, Not Got...)

The Goldstone Wrap takes a look back to the seemingly random coming together of Brighton & Hove Albion and Nigeria in a friendly match in 1981...

Billie Jean-King playing for Swedish women's football team IFK Hässleholm? She could be in the front row of a picture at The Vintage Football Club, but it's probably not her...

On Goals Scored have a nice infographic showing how many times various teams have changed manager since 1985...

And for anyone that wants an instant classic sticker collection, what about this set of 37 albums in a single eBay lot? Yours for only £1,350...

Great Tracksuits of Our Time: No.14 - FA Cup Special

Not long to go now until FA Cup Final Day, so let's look back to 1978 when two rather fine tracksuit tops graced the biggest game in the English football calendar.

The scene was Wembley, the teams were Ipswich Town and Arsenal. Terry Neill and Bobby Robson emerged from the tunnel into the warm May sunshine and shortly after we got our first sight of the 22 players that would start the 1978 FA Cup Final.

Arsenal were bedecked in red tracksuit tops made by Umbro. Combined with the blue shorts of the away kit they were wearing on the day, the overall effect was a slightly confusing one for supporters and neutrals alike, yet the garment itself was a fine one.

Pat Rice and Frank Stapleton meet
Princess Alexandra

Umbro's familiar diamond logo was stitched in white contained within tramlines along the shoulders and sleeves, running up to the neck where an unavoidable white flappy collar appeared. A white zip divided both halves of the chest and on either side was a large Umbro logo and a depiction of Arsenal's 'cannon' motif which was so big that it could easily have been drawn on a scale of 1:1.

Allan Hunter (Ipswich)

Adidas were the creators of the Ipswich tracksuit top, and they too left no-one in any doubt as to what their corporate logo looked like. The styling was slightly different, however.

On a rich royal blue backdrop, the zip was this time inconspicuous by its similar colouring and a hood was provided instead of a big collar. To complete the look, the famous three stripes of the German sportswear company ran along the sleeves in white while the Ipswich club badge sat proudly on the right breast.

Mick Mills (right) walks the line

The backs of the tops were also different. As anyone that studied at The Football Attic's School of Tracksuit Design will tell you, the mark of a truly great track top can be found in the name of the team or the outfit's manufacturer spelled out in lettering on the back. In this respect, the Suffolk club score full marks for displaying 'Ipswich Town FC' in a perfect arc on theirs.

Rear Gunner: (right) Arsenal's cannon

Arsenal, however, applied a delightfully discrete sense of style by doing away with their club name in favour of a white cannon which looked absolutely spot on. Working on the basis that everyone knew what the badge was (apart from most of the people watching the match live from Australia and New Zealand), it was a very nicely executed piece of knowing understatement.

But on such an auspicious occasion, which one was best - the red of Arsenal or the blue of Ipswich?

On the occasion of the 1978 FA Cup Final, there was only one winner - that of tracksuit design itself.

Check out our other Great Tracksuits of Our Time here

Great Tracksuits of Our Time: No.8

Derby County (1978):

Much as we love the flamboyance of Admiral's many daring tracksuit designs, we shouldn't forget that it sometimes pays to imply a sense of style through understatedness. To that end, we bring you a lovely Umbro tracksuit worn by Derby County in the 1977/78 season.

As you can see, it features the Umbro diamond logo in white running between parallel lines on the sleeves - a familiar site on many a football kit at the time - as well as down the sides of the leggings. This can be seen clearly when looking at Steve Powell (right) who, despite looking splendid in the full tracksuit, has obviously done something regrettable to upset David Nish to his left.

Nevertheless it's the tops they're all wearing that score full marks for cool. Not only do they have a fine navy blue hood with white drawstring, but also a Saab logo above the Derby badge on the left breast.

The latter detail is something of a curiosity as The Rams have never actually featured Saab as a shirt sponsor throughout their history (their first was 'Fly British Midland' in 1979). Instead, Saab, through a local car dealership, were a commercial partner of Derby County whose logo ended up on advertising hoardings, match tickets and, of course, training apparel.

But all that aside, this was an excellent ensemble from Umbro proving all too easily that from time to time in the world of tracksuit design, less can certainly mean more.

Seen any great tracksuits from football's rich and illustrious past? Tell us all about them by dropping us a line to admin [at] thefootballattic [dot] com. We could feature your words on our website!

Other Great Tracksuits of Our Time:

• No.7: Coventry City (1978)
• No.6: Brighton & Hove Albion (1983)
• No.5: Arsenal (1989)
• No.4: John Bond special
• No.3: Leeds United (1974)
• No.2: Liverpool (1977)
• No.1: Slovan Bratislava (1976)

Rich J's Top 5... Worst England Home Kits

As usual when Chris posts a Top 5, my immediate reaction is to grab onto his coat tails and quickly chuck my own top 5 out there, but in the case of his Top 5 England Home Kits, he's chosen some crackers and 2 of my would-be top 5 are also in there.

At some point, I will choose my Top 5 2nd/3rd kits, but for now, I'm going in the opposite direction and bang out what I think are the Top 5 worst England home kits. 

In no particular order...

1. Umbro 2003-2005 

Famous for: Penalty woe... again

Worn in England's disappointing (do we ever have any other kind of tournament these days?) Euro 2004 campaign, this kit conjures up images of surrendered leads and yet another penalty shoot-out defeat. The reason I dislike this kit however is the sheer banality of it. 

When dealing with minimal designs, there's a fine line between 'classic' (see 2010) and bland. This sits on the latter's side. What could have been a great kit with clean lines and a strong red shoulder stripe is rendered boring by lame horizontal shadow patterning and a tiny tiny England badge. Instead of appearing bold, it appears apologetic. Apology not accepted!

2. Admiral 1980-1983

Famous for: Keegan's flick...

I know this is going to be controversial (it's one of Chris' favourites!), but I really, REALLY don't like this kit and never have. To me it represents Admiral's fall from grace, going from a range of classy kits to this overblown, garish slice of early 80's awfulness.

The V-neck was too large and dates it badly, but the real crime is those huge panels. As with the classic / bland line, there's a fine line between daring and hideous. This is so far over that line, you'd need the Hubble telescope to see it.

3. Umbro 1997-1999

Famous for: "Quickly Kevin, do you think he'll score?". "Yes!...oh..."

Large panels again! Worn in one of England's most exciting World Cup matches in modern history, the 2nd Round draw against Argentina, which featured the following:

- Argentina taking an early lead from a penalty

- Owen diving for the equalising penalty

- Owen staying on his feet and scoring a goal that still makes my skin tingle

- Argentina equalising with a brilliantly worked free kick

- Beckham's sending off.

- Alan "Elbows" Shearer ruining a perfectly good goal from Campbell.

- David Batty missing his penalty.

Unfortunately, it also featured this mess of a shirt. I was never a huge fan of the Euro 96 kit (turquoise?), but this replacement was crap. Three lions? Where? Oh that really faint bunch of tiny cats in light blue, floating around in a giant shield? NO!

4. Umbro 1993-1994

Famous for: "Do I Not Like That!"

England's Italia 90 kit has unsurprisingly gone down as an all time classic. I don't personally think it's one of the best designs out there, but it's still pretty good. Shame it was sullied slightly by featuring at Euro 92...worn by Carlton Palmer and Andy Sinton...

But time moves on and so it was that England's brilliant qualifying campaign for USA 94 was undertaken in this smart outfit. By which I mean we failed to qualify for the World Cup wearing one of the lamest shirts ever! The first badge to see the 3 lions lost inside the shield (a la 97-99), at least they were visible... but then even if you didn't see them, it was OK as a second mini badge adorned the neck. Because that's what you need on a national shirt... two badges! Mummy badge and baby badge... awww how cute is that? It isn't! We were crap and had a shirt to go with it. 

5. Umbro 2007 - 2009

Famous for: Absolutely nothing!

Remember this kit at Euro 2008? No! Why not? We all know! 

Yes, I hereby give you a kit overshadowed by a bloke with a brolly. But that's not why I dislike this outift. I dislike this one because it marked the pinnacle (nadir?) of adding unnecessary bits of "design" onto the kit. The red stripe was cool, the pointy flag on the shoulder was interesting, if a little tacky. This on the other hand was just shit. A red stripe with erectile dysfunction draped forlornly across the shoulder for no discernible reason, topped off with two blue diamonds... because...?

It was also the last kit to feature the detestable and wholly superfluous 'ENGLAND' wording on the badge.

Thankfully, someone at Umbro stepped in after this and came up with the 2010 classic outfit and it's been pretty good ever since... yes, even the Peter Saville one with the multicoloured crosses on it is better than any here! Can't wait for Nike to ruin their good work though ;-)

Chris O's Favourite 5... England home kits

Once again we find ourselves ready to make acquaintance with another new England home strip, an altogether more frequent event these days but made all the more exciting this time around due to a new manufacturer taking over.

But before we embrace all that Nike has to offer, I thought I'd take a look at the home kits England have worn since World Cup '66 and pick out my own Favourite 5... and if you want to see Rich J's Worst 5, click here!

1. Admiral 1980-83

The first and so far only England shirt I've ever owned, or at least a cheap nylon interpretation of one. When England wore this strip for the first time against Argentina in a 1980 friendly, BBC commentator Barry Davies felt duty bound to question the inclusion of all the colours of the Union Flag on the kit. Maybe he was right, but it would be another 32 years before he'd see an England home kit that was only white and red.

When this kit was launched in May 1980, I remember feeling at the time that the design was good, but not quite on a par with those being produced by Adidas at the time. True though this might have been, it offered a unique look that no other team had, thanks to those distinctive horizontal bands across the shoulders.

If I have to make one criticism, it'd be that the shade of blue was too bright, but as was the case with the previous England home kit, Admiral appear to have made the decision that navy blue was out and royal blue was in. I'd love to have seen what this kit would have looked like with navy rather than royal blue, but this kit still looks great and gains more and more retro kudos with every passing year.

2. Umbro 1987-89

I realise this view chimes with only 0.03% of the world's population, but I really loved this when it was worn around the time of Euro 88. Perhaps it's because the kit has become synonymous with an utterly terrible England campaign that few people like it, but that's unfair in my view.

This, to me, was a breath of fresh air compared to the dull, unimaginative kit that we saw before it in World Cup 86. The crew neck was modern in an understated but fashionable way, and there was a subtle dash of red used here and there on the cuffs and shorts too. How much red to use on the England home kit has always been a tricky skill to master for its manufacturers. Too much and it can spoil the overall effect; too little and you risk upsetting the Barry Davieses of this world.

This, however, was a perfectly executed kit that was as creative in its design as it was smart. A shame, therefore, that we didn't see it worn for a slightly longer period, or at the very least in a successful tournament for the team wearing it.

3. Umbro 1999-2001

If you're going to produce a kit with a retro feel, you really have to get the design spot on... and that's exactly what Umbro did with this one.

With the exception of the squad number in the middle of the shirt, there wasn't any red on show at all. A simple round neck was ringed in navy blue (as were the cuffs), while the shorts were plain and the socks had minimal decoration. There was also a pleasing shadow pattern on the shirt which featured a series of horizontal bands.

Unfortunately for such a great home kit, this was the one that England experienced the least success in. Throughout it's paltry 12 games of service, only three were won while five were drawn. One of those three victories was against Luxembourg, as if to make matters worse.

Not exactly England's luckiest kit, then, but it did manage to beautifully combine an old-fashioned look with an up-to-date freshness. Very nice.

4. Umbro 2005-07

A neat idea from the Umbro boffins this time - namely to use a stylised version of the St. George's cross to add the merest dash of red colouring to this clean-looking outfit. The cross itself may have looked a bit sharp and spiky, but if nothing else it added a much-needed edge to the armoury of an under-achieving team.

And this kit indeed played its part to reverse that trend. Statistics show that this is England's most successful home kit since 1947. Worn on 20 occasions, 14 resulted in victory.

Returning to that red cross on the shoulder, the asymmetrical approach nicely echoes the way Admiral used to design some of their kits back in the 1970's, which is no bad thing. Who says you have to have the same features on one side of the kit as you do on the other?

In summary, then, we have a modern take on the 'white shirts / navy blue shorts' format that once again lacks unnecessary stripes and fussy paraphernalia. Not boring, not complicated - just great.

5. Umbro 2009-10

And so we get to the first England home kit for decades that was specifically designed to be worn with white shorts instead of navy blue. A bit of a gamble, perhaps, but for all those people suggesting the kit should reflect the colours of the English flag they finally had what they wanted: and how.

This is a kit that strips away all the stilted boredom of the 2000's, all the garish excesses of the 1990's, all the pretentious design of the 1980's and the unrelenting rash of manufacturers logos from the 1970's to leave us with the tailored simplicity you see before you. It's white, has a proper shirt collar, a traditional England badge and a single Umbro logo in red, as are the numbers. The temptation to elaborate was resisted and commendably so.

Though the current outgoing England kit tried to repeat the same format, it fell down by adding a bit too much red, even if it was done sparingly. This one stayed true to its clear objective and looks amazing as a result.

So there you have it - my Favourite 5 England home shirts which I'm sure will see many of you criticise my eye for a good design, but what would your Favourite 5 be... or your Worst 5?! Leave us a comment below or better still, write up your thoughts into a blog post for us. Send your details by email to admin [at] thefootballattic [dot] com and we'll do our best to publish your work.

Great Tracksuits of Our Time: No. 2

Liverpool (1977):

Once again we witness the seamster's art in all its glory as Bob Paisley's FA Cup finalists of 1977 wear their name proudly on the back of their tracksuit tops. The garment itself is beautifully styled by Umbro with a striped collar, cuffs and waist band, a style that Umbro resurrected for England's 2012/13 anthem jackets [retch]. On the front (see Emlyn Hughes above), we see a big Umbro diamond opposite a Liverpool FC badge with commemorative 'FA Cup Final 1977' stitching below. On the reverse... well it has to be some shouty letters spelling out your club name, doesn't it? It was never any other way back in the 70's, and so much the better for it.

Seen any fine examples of retro tracksuit design? Tell us all about them by dropping us a line to admin [at] thefootballattic [dot] com.

Rich J's Favourite 5... World Cup Shirts

Following on from Chris' Top 5 World Cup Shirts, I present my choices. Just missing out were Denmark '86 (Home) as Chris had chosen the away so I thought I'd find an alternative and West Germany 1990 (Away). A great shirt from a classic design, but just didn't quite make the cut... so, here they are:

1. Argentina (1986, Home)

It’s obvious Mexico 86 would rear its (none too) ugly head with anything I do, but this kit has been more than just a shirt to me - it’s been a lifelong quest. In the same way I spent most of my youth and adulthood trying to track down a Subbuteo World Cup Trophy, a parallel quest was to own this, or more likely, a replica of this shirt – a quest that has mostly been achieved.

There are several things about this shirt that set it above all other Argentina outfits. The centre stripe is white... big deal you say, but Argentina always have the centre stripe blue (I am deliberately ignoring Adidas’ shameless attempt to ape this iconic design at the 2010 World Cup). Big deal, I hear you repeat, but that’s me - I like the small details of these things.



Secondly, the shirt was made in that tea-bag material so common at the time and reminiscent of the airtex shirts worn by England in 1970, both times brought about by the stifling Mexican heat and the need to play games at midday for European TV audiences.
Last, but not least, it just looked so good in the blazing sunshine, with the contrasting black shorts and white socks... a fine ensemble.

As a final point: I nearly went for the change shirt worn against England, which could almost be referred to as a 3rd shirt, given it was a one off, but the home shirt just edged it as it made the final look so colourful with West Germany in their green away shirts.

2. Italy (2006, Home)

I’ll say it here and now: despite blue being my favourite colour, I have just never liked Italy shirts. Not quite sure why, but they’ve just never done it for me. That all changed however, in 2006. The gorgeous blue, contrasting with the dark side panels just seemed to really work. Add in the gold numbering / logos and that was it... SOLD! And sold it was as it was the first ‘new’ football kit I’d bought for years (I’d been buying mostly older ones off eBay until then) and one which sparked an avalanche of kit buying.

One huge downside of this shirt was that, when worn in matches, because of the design which was supposed to wick sweat away from the players, within seconds of the match starting, the players all looked like they were in a wet t-shirt contest...only one where they were doused with sweat...men’s sweat. Grim.

Italy went on to have another great shirt combining blue and gold at Euro 2008, a fascinating light blue one with brown shirts at the 2009 Confederations Cup, then ruined it with the robot face abomination at WC2010. Their Euro 2012 shirt was also rubbish. So there.

3. Argentina (1998, Away)

Though this is one of my favourite kits of all time, I was originally going to go for the Yugoslavia home kit from the same world cup as it’s in the same style and I was trying to avoid two kits from the same country, but when I saw this one again, I just had to choose it.

Again it’s the details I like with this one. Argentina have long worn blue away shirts and these have mostly been in a dark shade, which can often lead to them being rather drab looking with some bordering on black. This one however is lightened by its two key features:

1) A classic v-neck. For me, there’s no better neck on a shirt than a good old V. Crossover V’s are good, but just a classic, joined in the middle is better and this one sets off the dark blue of the shirt perfectly, finished in sky blue with white trim.

2) The side panels. White side panels with two sky blue stripes (oh wait, it’s an Adidas shirt so that’s basically light blue side panels with three white stripes) running from the base of the shirt to the sleeves.

This was worn of course, in the match against England in which two stars effectively showed two different career paths with Owen shining brightly only to fade away and Beckham going from effigy No.1 to all time great (and then fading out as well). Oh, and Ian Wright sulked on national TV afterwards...

4. Ireland (1994, Away)

One cannot see this shirt without also picturing a furious John Aldridge threatening to take on the whole of the USA if he wasn’t allowed on that ‘damn’ pitch, Jackie Charlton having handbags with the 4th official alongside him. The shirt itself was a masterpiece in away design in that it retained the usual colour scheme of the away shirt, thereby not straying too far from tradition, but did something interesting with them instead. Three stripes (on an Adidas shirt???) in green with orange pinstripe borders that faded out halfway down the shirt.

I’m sure this will be a controversial choice, but may I also remind you that this was a World Cup when approximately 97.3% of the teams present had the same identikit Adidas design with the three truncated stripes rising diagonally from either side of the kit, so to see something with a touch of originality was rather refreshing.

5. Brazil (1986, Home)

Brazil’s kits never really used to change, did they, save for a slightly different collar. Nowadays, there’s all manner of crap invading what is essentially an all time classic shirt, the low points of this being Umbro’s 94 shirt with large shadow pattern badges across the thing and 2002’s craptacular Nike effort with thin triangles of green forming some kind of frame... ugh!

But back in 1986, there were still all about the classic look. Made by Topper it was, as stated, a simple affair. Plain yellow, no shadow patterns, no flashes of green, just plain yellow. Dark green cuffs and matching collar, but not a round one like '70 and '82, a v-neck with collar flaps.

Finishing this all off nicely was their badge, which had replaced the usual CBF crest with one featuring the Jules Rimet Trophy, celebrating the three World Cup wins. Showcased in the quarter final against France, one of the best matches at a World Cup Finals, this shirt is a true classic. Also, Socrates wore it and he was a dude!

Chris O's Favourite 5... World Cup Shirts

1. South Africa (1998, home)

I know my taste in virtually everything represents the minority view, but I absolutely loved this kit when it appeared in the 1998 World Cup. Kappa, the manufacturers, showed brilliant originality in weaving together four colours into a mad tapestry the like of which has rarely ever been seen.

Rather than go for an intricate pattern, South Africa’s white home shirt featured large stripes of yellow and black with a splash of green on the collar and sides. The colour scheme extended further onto the green and black shorts and white socks. A fabulously inventive creation, but one that admittedly will generate more negative comments than positive ones.

2. Scotland (1990, change)

In a not dissimilar way, Scotland’s change shirt for the 1990 World Cup also made virtue of yellow stripes on a white background. Even as an England fan, I loved it – so much so that my 18-year-old self went out and bought it.

There was something about the simplicity of those lemon-coloured bars evenly spaced from top to bottom, broken in sequence only by two in navy blue straddling the team badge and the Umbro logo. Throw in a navy blue button-up collar and you had a shirt that was bordering on perfection to my mind, especially when worn with the navy blue shorts and socks that went with it. It’s just a shame it was only worn the once in the 1990 tournament – a lamentable 1-0 defeat to Costa Rica.

3. Nigeria (1994, change)

Yet another white strip, but this was a complete one-off. Nigeria made their World Cup debut in 1994 and did so in eye-raising fashion by wearing a kit so distinctive as to be utterly unique.

Against Bulgaria and Greece, Nigeria had the opportunity to show off arguably their most distinctive shirt ever. It was white and decorated all over in a regular pattern of ethnic African symbols coloured black. It remains one of the finest Adidas strips ever seen in a World Cup and shows how, with a little imagination, a shirt can break all the rules and still attract worldwide admiration.

4. West Germany (1990, home)

How often have you seen a stripe wandering across a shirt of its own free will in a seemingly random direction? That’s what you got with the shirt West Germany wore in the 1990 World Cup. Upon yet another white background, the colours of the German flag – black, red and yellow – meandered their way from one arm across to the other. The shirts worn by the West German national team hadn’t featured much red and yellow prior to the 1990 World Cup, but this signalled a turning point the effect of which lasts to this very day.

The design was very nicely executed. Each of the three coloured tapes were punctuated by white diamonds in two places which, through a cynics eye, could have been seen as an accidental nod towards Umbro on this Adidas shirt. As it is, they helped to prevent the coloured bands from being too bold on the eye and, like the overall design, looked entirely appropriate and stylish to boot.

5. Denmark (1986, change)

Football shirts with a ‘half-and-half’ design have been commonplace since the origins of the game. Think of Feyenoord and Blackburn Rovers and you’ll soon get the picture. Denmark, however, are not famous for wearing such a distinctive design, but that didn’t stop them donning a fabulous first-choice shirt during the 1986 World Cup.

Hummel were the company that added a fresh twist to an old look by representing one half of the Danish away shirt as a series of red pinstripes to complement the other half in white. With Hummel’s distinctive chevrons running down both sleeves (one of which had red pinstripes, the other in white) this design looked wonderful in the glorious sun-baked hues of Mexico. Worn with red shorts against Scotland and white shorts against Spain, this was a shirt that looked good in any colour, be it two-tone red for Denmark’s home strip, claret and blue for Aston Villa or sky blue for Coventry.

What would be your favourite five World Cup shirts? Leave us a comment below, or better still, explain your choices in a guest post on The Football Attic. Drop us an email at admin [at] thefootballattic [dot] com and we’ll do the rest.