England (Home 2014-15)

It is a new era for the English team: for the first time since 1982, the team will not play with Umbro jerseys at a big international tournament. Sporting giants Nike secured another scalp and with England they probably have the most iconic jersey after Brazil. Although I have not covered it yet, the first jersey was actually a beauty – very much in the style of the great USA Centennial jersey. And while man would have liked England to play exactly in these, only the foolish did not expect a new jersey for the World Cup. Here it is:

Without doubt this is the simplest World Cup shirt if not England shirt. A white shirt with a broad V-neck. Swoosh and centered front number are in blue with the Three-Lions crest placed nicely on the left side. No other accents, or so it seems. At closer inspection there are many light silver pinstripes on the front of the jersey. While pinstripes placed in appropriate width can give a jersey a great look, they actually give the jersey a pajama-feeling in this case.

Simplicity also reigns on the back. Only the new Bauhaus-style font is showing in blue with silver outlines. Gone however are the pinstripes from the front.

Likelihood of being featured: 100%
vs. Italy: 99% (Should be 100%, but I leave 1% just to allow for some error)
vs. Uruguay: 99% (Same as above)
vs. Costa Rica: 99% (Same as above)

In principle I like simplicity. But here not so much. Probably one of the most disappointing England jerseys I can remember. What bothers me is the blue that is too light as well as the dull style of the jersey. I think undershirt or pajama shirt is an appropriate description. All could have been saved if the collar and the sleeves would feature some sort of Navy accents, but this one does not look like an England shirt to me. I tried hard to like this one, but given what Nike was able to cook up last year, this just does not make the cut.

My rating: 4/10 stars.

How do you rate this shirt?

Manchester United (Home 2012/13)

In wake of today’s monster clash between Manchester United and Real Madrid, let’s have a look at ManU‘s current home jersey. Together with Barca and Real, ManU is probably the most well-known soccer club in the world. I guess it is for this reason that Nike desperately wanted to become their kit supplier. Furthermore, ManU is always guaranteed a very unique design. As always, these range from great to blunder and I think this year’s edition falls into the latter category.

Manchester United’s uniform is very traditional: red shirt, white pants, black socks. So, you would think there is not much room to wiggle here. At first glance, this year’s jersey does exactly that. A (darkish) red jersey with a black V-neck. The crest appropriately put on the left side of the chest and to keep with the club’s colors Sponsor and manufacturer are kept in white. So far, so good. What really bothers me is the annoying gingham pattern on the shirt. Without it, I would give this jersey high marks, but I just cannot look past it. I understand it is a tribute to Manchester’s cotton mills and I do acknowledge that any such reference should be lauded and appreciated. However, it not only gives the shirt a slightly darker tint than the traditional red it makes it look too angular and … let’s just say, I hate it.

The backside is plain if we overlook that *@#$@%@ pattern and there is a little black devil just beneath the collar. I already mentioned, that I do like the Premier League’s numbering and lettering style.

As mentioned above, without the gingham pattern, I would give probably high marks. But this is definitely one for the categories “good idea, bad execution” and “What were they thinking?”.

My rating: 4/10 stars.

How do you rate this shirt?