Austria (Home 2014-15)

After two Adidas jerseys, let’s change manufacturer: two Puma jerseys are next. With me being from Austria (any surprise?) and Puma having one of the longest running national team contracts (since 1976!) with the Nationalteam, it is only fitting that I start the reviews on the latest Puma range with my home country. So, here it is:

Before looking at the actual jersey, the most striking feature of all new Puma shirts is their ultra-tight fit (that is if the players choose to go with their correct size). While the ladies may appreciate this look, I am not sure I need my soccer players display their muscles gym-style. Other than that, the templates are actually quite simple as they were the first time ultra tight shirts were introduced (by Kappa in 2000).
The Austrian home jersey is still red with white accents. These appear on the jersey in the shape of shoulder stripes, as well as thin vertical stripes around the abdomen and thicker white stripes running down the sides of the jersey. There is also a white inset on the upper sleeve trims. The biggest feature of the shirt however is the shadow pattern of a stylized Austrian eagle.

While the striping looks marginal at first, the one on the shoulders and on the sides is quite bold when you look at the in-action pictures of the Austrian team. Also, in the first picture it may seem that the Puma logo and the Austrian coat of arms is riding a bit high, but given the very wide round collar things are actually placed appropriately. On these pictures we can also see that there are three Puma logos (two on the sleeves one on the chest) as well as a nicely centered number on the front.

Given the relative plain nature of the front of the shirt (if we disregard the stripes), it is not surprise that the back is also quite plain with only names and numbers appearing in white. The latter are the most pleasant surprise of the new Puma range: the font is great! Very legible, simple and bold. Now awkward style whatsoever. I wish Puma would use this style for all eternity!

The jersey is not that bad, but I do have some qualms with it (beside that Austria still plays in red at home): the tight fit is not my favorite. Also the striping on the sides seems to add unnecessary clutter to an otherwise simple shirt. If you leave those out we would look at a solid 8/10 if not 9/10. But, I go lower than that since I totally dislike the eagle shadow pattern. A similar one has been used on old Austrian bills but it just looks odd. Why not use the one that is actually featured on the crest?

My rating: 5/10 stars.

How do you rate this shirt?