It's been our biggest ever month to date here at Showboat. We had north of 25,000 shirts uploaded onto our app in a single month. And it wasn't even a 31-day month. Collectors from all corners of the globe took the time to photograph and share their personal football shirt archives. So we thought it only right to try and annoy the vast majority of them by singling out five we really like. So, here goes. The best five football shirts uploaded to Showboat in September...
Tokyo Verdy - Home 2 - 1995/96
Back when Tokyo Verdy were Verdy Kawasaki, they really did produce some breathtaking kits. Coined from the Portuguese term 'verde', meaning green, the club have always worn this colour. Though, the choice of green actually comes from paying homage to Brazilian side Palmeiras. This beauty was worn strictly during cup matches and, as the various patches on it show, is a matchworn item. It's a shirt any collector of a J-League persuasion would want in their collection.
Aberdeen - Jumper - 1990/92
Now, technically not a shirt, sure. But how often do you see an item of clobber like this? One of our favourite things about Showboat is seeing collectors who specialise in one team. It means the platform itself becomes a hub of detail and specificity. God, that sounded nerdy. You know what we mean.
This one happened to be uploaded by one of our suppliers, the brilliant EH Retro Kits who sell an array of authentic football shirts on the Showboat marketplace. But you won't find this jumper on there. This is strictly from the owner's personal stash. He uploaded a series of beautifully photographed Aberdeen shirts this week. If you're browsing the Showboat app currently then search for Aberdeen and seek them out.
Our team settled on a valuation of £175 for this but you can't imagine anyone parting with such a gem for that.
Real Madrid - Home - 1986/97
Hummel's partnership with Real Madrid is one of the most underrated collaborations in football history, for us. This was the first shirt they produced over an eight-year spell that saw Parmalat, Reny Picot, Otaysa and, famously, Teka. The Parmalat sponsor was undoubtedly the classiest of the lot and fit the era perfectly.
This shirt, complete with Emilio Butragueño and the number seven on the back, is a lovely addition to Showboat and has clearly been well taken care of over the years. For that reason, our team valued this at around £225.
TSV 1860 München - Home - 1996/97
A classic we'll never, ever get tired of seeing. Especially in long sleeves. Manufactured by Nike and sponsored by the German brewery Löwenbräu, this one has developed a cult following among collectors. And for very good reason.
The colour and design scream mid-90s football aesthetics. It's also one of the increasingly rare shirts where the sponsor actually improves the shirt rather than spoils it.
We valued this at around £230. But it's fair to say this one is going to keep rising in value.
Italy - Home - 1980
These classic shirts are like marmite to a lot of collectors. Some love the simplicity, others are left wanting more. We're firmly in the former category.
This 1980s matchworn cracker stands out because it was likely worn during the 1980 European Championship by Roberto Bettega, the Juventus forward. He was one of the biggest Italian stars of that period and the shirt has been kept in immaculate condition by a serious collector.
The shirt itself was manufactured by an oft-forgotten maker of shirts for the Italian national team, Le Coq Sportif. Our team were enamoured with this one and set the value at £800.
