dirtynine's Digest - The Thread for Kits

67YAZ

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Noooooooo. You gotta earn that star.

How sweet will it be the day Captain Tyler Adams lifts the up skyward and passes it to Golden Boot winner Christian Pulisic?
 

Tangled Up In Red

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Yeah, and apologies for overlooking the USWNT, but presumably 4 stars on both blue and white for the women and none for the men. Can someone confirm?
Shameful (or perhaps just cost conscious) if Brazil women wear 5 stars.
 

SoxFanInCali

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California. Duh.
The difference with Brazil is the 5 stars are part of the Brazilian Football Confederation badge. So all their teams, (men's, women's, youth teams) wear it. The USSF (and just about every other country) badge doesn't contain any stars, so stars are added above the US badge on all shirts for the women only. Another example of this is Germany, where the men and women wear the same badge but there are 4 stars above it for the men and 2 for the women.
 

dirtynine

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Couple things...

1. The Houston Dynamo are now Houston Dynamo FC. New crest as well. (I have thoughts.)

36530

2. Chicago Fire are dumping their one-year-old redesign, and doing it over again. Great move. (I had thoughts about this last year, when they did this the first time.)

3. Over the summer, I worked on a BLM jersey design and talked a bit about it in this thread. I didn't move forward then, but I've continued to work and think about it. If anyone's interested, here's where things stand. I haven't published this yet; any feedback is certainly welcome.
 

67YAZ

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3. Over the summer, I worked on a BLM jersey design and talked a bit about it in this thread. I didn't move forward then, but I've continued to work and think about it. If anyone's interested, here's where things stand. I haven't published this yet; any feedback is certainly welcome.
Love the direction you've gone with the BLM jersey. It called me back to Ruth Clement Bond's work, who made a series of quilts for the Tennessee Valley Authority. I learned about her because her son, George Clement Bond, was one of the most influential professors I ever had - a brilliant anthropologist and old school educator who would routinely deconstruct students' ideas and then rebuild them into workable concepts through a series of piercing questions. I miss George and think of him often. In any case, really great work with the jersey.

 

dirtynine

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The trend towards simplicity is much appreciated. I have issues with the composition (‘KC’ is small, stars should be outside the boundary!) and color choices (red on teal, not ideal), but honestly, anything simple enough has an easier path to becoming timeless.
 

OCST

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The trend towards simplicity is much appreciated. I have issues with the composition (‘KC’ is small, stars should be outside the boundary!) and color choices (red on teal, not ideal), but honestly, anything simple enough has an easier path to becoming timeless.
Meh?

Sorry, not feeling it.
 

SocrManiac

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I've bought jerseys for as long as I can remember, but I'm getting of the age where they're a bit awkward to wear in public.

I saw this in my FB feed (actually, the Juventus version) and thought it was a fantastic idea. These are clearly unlicensed and who knows about the quality, but I thought it was an awesome idea: https://www.max99tee.com/products/liverpool?variant=1000003775495837

This seems like it would be a fantastic option from an official team store.
 

Zomp

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Surprised Henry and Co haven't been pushing the player T shirts. Those are a huge hit at the Fenway store.

Agreed, SocrManian. Before my wardrobe consisted of 20% jerseys. Unfortunately now they are worn around the house.

Wait til your daughter gets old enough though. I bought my son the United third kit this year (Rashford) and he wants to wear it every night because he wants to play on the zebra team.
 

OCST

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I wear mine cycling, that seems to be ok, and they're good for it.

Otherwise... I went to see a live Men in Blazers show in Brooklyn - which was hysterical, not the least of which because they both got completely shitfaced - but the audience was all paunchy guys in their Chelsea and Barca and USMNT shirts. Somewhere on the spectrum between ComicCon and the furry convention.
 

dirtynine

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I wear mine cycling, that seems to be ok, and they're good for it.

Otherwise... I went to see a live Men in Blazers show in Brooklyn - which was hysterical, not the least of which because they both got completely shitfaced - but the audience was all paunchy guys in their Chelsea and Barca and USMNT shirts. Somewhere on the spectrum between ComicCon and the furry convention.
BlazerCon by any chance? I managed to be in attendance... paunch and all. It was definitely a unique vibe.
 

67YAZ

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The Chicago Fire have hired Matthew Wolff to redesign the team's badge & aesthetic. The name probably means something to the hardcore football design denizens like @dirtynine, but didn't to me until I saw that he did the Nigeria World Cup kits. Mansueto going top-shelf again.
 

Senator Donut

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The Chicago Fire have hired Matthew Wolff to redesign the team's badge & aesthetic. The name probably means something to the hardcore football design denizens like @dirtynine, but didn't to me until I saw that he did the Nigeria World Cup kits. Mansueto going top-shelf again.
That’s great news. I’ve posted this before, but I used to work for Morningstar, and it shocked me that Mansueto went with such a bland badge and colors for his club. Although, I didn’t know the name Matthew Wolff before, the new FC Tulsa badge is perhaps my favorite in American soccer.

https://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/new_logo_for_fc_tulsa_by_matthew_wolff.php
 

67YAZ

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That’s great news. I’ve posted this before, but I used to work for Morningstar, and it shocked me that Mansueto went with such a bland badge and colors for his club. Although, I didn’t know the name Matthew Wolff before, the new FC Tulsa badge is perhaps my favorite in American soccer.

https://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/new_logo_for_fc_tulsa_by_matthew_wolff.php
Yeah, Wolff’s portfolio is very impressive. Don’t love all the work, but he has a real knack for badges.

Mansueto took over the club just several weeks before the new branding rolled out. It makes sense to me that he wouldn’t quash it so late in the process and likely alienate a lot of his new employees in the process. Instead, he’s leveraged the poor public response into anticipation for a new look. And if the timing works out, a new aesthetic for 2022 should coincide with a much more competitive squad on the pitch & a full season at Soldier Field...could feel like a brand new era for the Fire.
 

dirtynine

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Wolff is awesome. He’s got my dream job - hired gun for domestic soccer identities. (My initials as well.) LAFC and Roots FC are two of my favorites. There’s almost nobody else to go to currently in MLS circles if you want design credibility.

I have to say I love the new Montreal crest. They should have kept Impact in the brand somewhere, but it’s much better than other recent league identities (I was not a huge fan of Houston’s recent rework). Getting Calgary Olympics vibes, not at all a bad thing.
 

Senator Donut

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I have to say I love the new Montreal crest. They should have kept Impact in the brand somewhere, but it’s much better than other recent league identities (I was not a huge fan of Houston’s recent rework). Getting Calgary Olympics vibes, not at all a bad thing.
I think I like the new Montreal badge, but I wish it was more blue than gray. Dropping the Impact name is of course a shame. I also never quite realized how bland their current crest was. We could easily confuse it for a pre-Wolff Lou City design in black and white.

Would your thoughts on Houston change if they only wore the HD monogram on their shirts like Flamengo or Rangers? I think that would look sharp.
 

dirtynine

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I think I like the new Montreal badge, but I wish it was more blue than gray. Dropping the Impact name is of course a shame. I also never quite realized how bland their current crest was. We could easily confuse it for a pre-Wolff Lou City design in black and white.

Would your thoughts on Houston change if they only wore the HD monogram on their shirts like Flamengo or Rangers? I think that would look sharp.
absolutely - it would still be plain, but it would be far more powerful. Notre Dame is the obvious comp, but Dodger/Giants/(gulp) Yankees are right there too. I bet they evolve to something like this - kind of like how Liverpool uses the Liverbird on its own in many contexts. A crest doesnt need a discrete enclosing shape if its visual idea is strong enough.
 

dirtynine

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It goes back further than MLS - one of those names like Sounders that has a legacy in primordial North American soccer (70s-early 90s). Though “Impact” is a bit dopey, I grew to love the name in its french form - Impact de Montréal. Always thought that should be the club’s name across all languages.
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
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It goes back further than MLS - one of those names like Sounders that has a legacy in primordial North American soccer (70s-early 90s). Though “Impact” is a bit dopey, I grew to love the name in its french form - Impact de Montréal. Always thought that should be the club’s name across all languages.
Did not know that and it makes a big difference for me.

Agree re: the French form.
 

candylandriots

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Wolff is awesome. He’s got my dream job - hired gun for domestic soccer identities. (My initials as well.) LAFC and Roots FC are two of my favorites. There’s almost nobody else to go to currently in MLS circles if you want design credibility.

I have to say I love the new Montreal crest. They should have kept Impact in the brand somewhere, but it’s much better than other recent league identities (I was not a huge fan of Houston’s recent rework). Getting Calgary Olympics vibes, not at all a bad thing.
There was something about that crest that was familiar, but couldn’t put my finger on...once you mentioned Calgary, I thought it was the Sarajevo Olympics—but we are both right. I was shocked how much the logos from the 84 and 88 Winter Olympics look alike.

Edit: Though looking at others, they all kinda look like snowflakes.
 

67YAZ

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The Fire dropped their new strips, dubbed the Lakefront Kits. The first kit is very similar to last season - simple, a couple nice touches, nothing great. The 2nd jersey is a good one, really leaning into the city flag and even improving badge by making a simpler 2-tone affair. But the white shorts are not enough contrast - it makes the jersey look tinged instead of subtle. Hard to express, but that slight contrast throws it all out of whack.

39149
 

Titans Bastard

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Inter Miami has such a potentially interesting color scheme, but all of their jerseys have been so bad.

MLS is notorious for having boring, cookie-cutter jersey designs thanks to the league-wide partnership with Adidas. The recent cookie-cutter design with the shoulder stripes has especially strong "cheap rec league jersey" vibes.

 

Zososoxfan

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Inter Miami has such a potentially interesting color scheme, but all of their jerseys have been so bad.

MLS is notorious for having boring, cookie-cutter jersey designs thanks to the league-wide partnership with Adidas. The recent cookie-cutter design with the shoulder stripes has especially strong "cheap rec league jersey" vibes.

Agreed. Love their color scheme, fits the city well, but I didn't even know the MLS was doing the template thing. That's got to be one of the worst ideas ever.
 

Titans Bastard

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Agreed. Love their color scheme, fits the city well, but I didn't even know the MLS was doing the template thing. That's got to be one of the worst ideas ever.
It's been happening for years, but the latest template feels particularly template-y.

There are still some good kits around the league. Reporters have said that it only happens when teams commit to really spending of time working with the Adidas design team.

The second kit that Philly recently announced is an example of that. Is it revolutionary? No. Is it going in the HOF? No. But it's not the "plain white T shirt" away kit that most teams have. It's distinctive, and it hides the stripe-template pattern better than most current MLS shirts. We need more of that.

I don't know that much about the economics of the MLS/Adidas deal. Most teams aren't going to sell a ton of shirts, so maybe they do better financially when they combine together into one big Adidas contract. If so, I do think that's a bit pennywise and pound-foolish because bland jerseys are a wasted opportunity to build identity in you community.

 

dirtynine

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The survey results all just point to this.

View attachment 39268
Thanks guys! The Fire are doing it right. Maybe that concept helped push things 1% closer to where they’ll end up...

The Revs are having one of their “eh, whatever” jersey years. Every 3 or 4 seasons they put something distinctive together, but inevitably come back to this approach.
 

Zososoxfan

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View: https://twitter.com/3rdDegreeNet/status/1376534379976138752


Lol. MLS' dedication to having terrible non-brand building kits every single year is impressive.

I'm most impressed that one of the few distinctive kits in the league that had a chance to build brand identity (ATL UTD stripes) is gone.
I just find that so sad. Football kits are so iconic. They ripped the soul out of these. A handful stand out as good from the intentional monotony of the rest.
 

Titans Bastard

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View: https://twitter.com/3rdDegreeNet/status/1376534379976138752


Lol. MLS' dedication to having terrible non-brand building kits every single year is impressive.

I'm most impressed that one of the few distinctive kits in the league that had a chance to build brand identity (ATL UTD stripes) is gone.
There's a league-wide deal with Adidas and it's soooooooooo bad. AFAIK it expires after the 2024 season.

It's a real missed opportunity for MLS clubs to punch their way into larger cultural consciousness among general sports fans and beyond. I do like some of the home jerseys, but most are pretty bland, and the aways are all white t-shirts.

Inter Miami sadly have been gutless cowards about using pink in their color scheme. There's the potential for something iconic there.
 

Jimy Hendrix

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The Atlanta one is the most mind boggling to me. To get it right on an iconic shirt design and to be throwing it away already is wild. I get that clubs do this to try and sell more shirts, but fucking your iconic design up is more of a year 100 thing to do than year four or five or whatever this is. Let it breathe first.
 

SocrManiac

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Juventus was established in 1897 and it's still to early for the logo change they've made. Sometimes 100 years isn't enough when you have something good (or you're going to something horrible).