We’re now deep into August and there’s still no sign of the quality of new releases letting up. There’s a theme emerging this week, though. And that’s third kits. Most clubs have now released their home and away shirts and are in the process of getting to grips with the third shirt. We’re here for it. It’s a time for creativity, throwing club traditions out of the window and annoying the life out of the old boys.
Let’s have it then. The five best football shirts released this week, according to Showboat.
Aris Limassol - Home - Adidas
This one caught our eye. Not just for the shirt but everything around it. Named 'The Fingerprint', Aris Limassol sought to connect the shirt to the local community.
In truth it's more of a campaign than simply a shirt release, connecting season tickets, the new adidas kit and a commitment to the local community. 20% of every season ticket and every jersey sold is allocated to social initiatives and local projects designed to make a tangible impact on the city. The aim is to leave a mark, quite literally. A worthy addition to this week's list.
Como - Away - Adidas
Como can do no wrong at the minute. The world’s best-located stadium. Check. The world’s best young manager. Check. And while we won’t say they’re at the level of some of the other relative upstarts like Paris FC, Athens Kallithea or Venezia, they are on the move.
This one features a clean white base with subtle tonal stripes and navy detailing on the collar, cuffs and three stripes. Like most Adidas shirts this year, it’s finished with the iconic Trefoil and, unlike far fewer shirts, the Como 1907 crest. The sponsor, again, holds the shirt back a touch, but what can you do in this day and age?
Watford - Third - Kelme
Watford dropped a blinding third kit this week. It’s so good we’ve shrugged off all the PR claptrap that comes with a shirt release these days. This one, we’re informed, is inspired by their hometown, as though a shirt could really be inspired by anywhere else, and their Latin motto ‘Audentior’, meaning ‘With Greater Boldness’.
Now, after we picked ourselves up from the floor upon discovering Watford somehow need a Latin motto, we decided to concentrate on what’s important here. The shirt.
Admittedly, the sponsor gets in the way and drags this down a touch. But the colour, the bumblebee crest and the collar all mean this is a beautiful-looking number. Hercules would be proud.
Burton Albion - Third - Admiral
One of the things we’ve loved most this summer is football clubs at lower levels really taking care over what they release. Every club at any level has focused on their social media output in the desperate hope of going viral and the misguided thinking that followers equal fans. Now they’re actually starting to think about their supporters in the stands and how to impress them.
We’ve seen it at the likes of Grimsby this summer and Burton Albion fall very much into the category of trying to do something genuinely cool. This shirt has a lovely texture to it. Wallpaper-like, some might say. For us, it’s a very smart third shirt. Smart enough to wear over an actual shirt. Maybe.
Manchester United - Third - Adidas
Oh boy. United got themselves back amongst the elite last season under Michael Carrick and they’ve followed suit off the pitch this year. This gorgeous ivory shirt pulls from the places and people that shaped Greater Manchester. The look is inspired by artwork from the city’s community spaces and cultural institutions, including the iconic Salford Lads and Girls Club.
The rich maroon nods to Manchester’s famous red-brick architecture. The devil crest replaces the usual Manchester United crest and Snapdragon drop the wording, giving the whole thing a minimalism that makes it look more like a training shirt than a match one.
It’s exactly the kind of playfulness and freedom you want from a third shirt. Fair play to Yanited here.
