As Spanish football celebrates classic kits of the past, we look back on club jerseys that deserve to make a comeback.
This weekend sees most of the biggest football teams in Spain donning one-off kits with retro styling, as each club celebrates its history and traditions. Referees will also don vintage-inspired kits to mark the occasion, as La Liga follows in the footsteps of Australia’s NRL and AFL, both of whom have run similar campaigns.
Rugby union is yet to follow suit – though France did wear a special retro kit when they played England in the Six Nations – but we reckon it would be a fun trend for the sport to follow. So, in honour of La Liga’s retro shirt weekend, we’ve picked out five classic club jerseys we’d like to see again.
Five retro kits we’d like to see back in rugby
Munster 1999-2002
(Sportsfile/Corbis/Sportsfile via Getty Images)
As Wales rugby jerseys have proved on numerous occasions, a plain red shirt is surprisingly difficult to get right. Do too little and it looks like you couldn’t be bothered; do too much and it feels like you’re overly desperate to stand out.
This Munster shirt from the early days of professionalism absolutely nails it. The broad stripe over the shoulders manages to look striking without overpowering the rest of the design, while the navy blue and white provide plenty of contrast around the collar area. The Canterbury logo, club badge and sponsor ident are also perfectly in proportion.
Northampton Saints 2000-2002
(Dave Rogers/Getty Images)
There’s no shortage of Gallagher PREM teams who play in hoops. Over the years, Bath, Bristol Bears, Leicester Tigers and Northampton Saints have all experimented with different thicknesses of stripes – or even ditched them entirely – but few have nailed it quite like this classic Canterbury shirt, which graced Franklin’s Gardens in the early ’00s.
Somehow those iconic green, black and gold bands feel perfectly in balance, all topped off with a smart black collar. Even the sponsor, Travis Perkins, is in tune with the design, seeing as the builders merchants’ livery employs a similar colour scheme.
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ACT Brumbies 2001-2003
(Nick Wilson/Getty Images)
Okay, it’s a little baggier than any rugby player would wear nowadays, but this Canterbury design remains classy over 20 years later. It feels like a lot of separate ideas colliding, but they mesh surprisingly well, from the predominantly white lower half of the jersey to that casual open collar.
It also feels very Australian, from those gold bands to the hint of a V-motif on the front – squint at this shirt and it could almost feel at home on a rugby league field.
Stade Français 2012-2014
(LIONEL BONAVENTURE / AFP via Getty Images)
As befits a club based in the fashion capital of the world, the Parisian Top 14 side have a long tradition of taking to the field in the boldest rugby jerseys on the planet. In recent years they’ve toyed with murals, Andy Warhol-style prints, Rorschach tests, and numerous variations on their lurid pink home shirt – many of them powered-up with bold streaks of lightning.
We’re going to plump, however, for this stylish black number. Loads of teams try to emulate the classic New Zealand kit design, but few carry it off like this. The pink accents are surprisingly effective, while the large flower – a motif long associated with Stade Français shirts – also make this rugby jersey stand out from the crowd.
Harlequins 2016-2017
(Christopher Lee/Getty Images for Harlequins)
The Twickenham side’s iconic multicoloured quarters can be a bit garish for some tastes, but this Adidas design – released for the club’s 150th anniversary – has its cake and eats it. The colours are entirely in keeping with recent tradition, yet tastefully toned down to be slightly easier on the eye – and go better with a pair of jeans.
The German brand’s familiar shoulder stripes also serve to enhance the design, and even the DHL sponsor logo – a bright yellow block that could derail a lesser shirt – adds to a timeless whole.
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