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Collectible Soccer Jerseys
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Football jerseys are one part of a full kit, or uniform, that teams wear when playing soccer. From the sport’s early days, players’ knitted collarless shirts were often called “jerseys,” meaning close-fitting knitted shirts without collars, or...
Football jerseys are one part of a full kit, or uniform, that teams wear when playing soccer. From the sport’s early days, players’ knitted collarless shirts were often called “jerseys,” meaning close-fitting knitted shirts without collars, or sometimes "guernseys," describing a heavier garment or sweater typically associated with fishermen.
England’s first association football clubs formed during the 1850s and '60s, though none had specific uniform requirements. Players often wore their white cricket clothes along with a distinctively colored hat or scarf to distinguish opposing teams. The Sheffield Football Club’s 1857 rules provide the earliest known reference to football colors: "Each player must provide himself with a red and dark blue flannel cap, one colour to be worn by each side."
When England’s official Football Association (FA) was established in 1863, uniforms were still left up to each team, and most had no requirements for their players. However, with the increased visibility of England’s FA Cup in 1870, soccer clubs realized they needed clearer uniforms so fans could better tell them apart.
Most of the first team jerseys drew from the established colors of their upper-class schools or clubs, such as the Blackburn Rovers’ white jersey emblazoned with a blue Maltese cross or Reading’s jersey in its pink, blue, and burgundy colors. Meanwhile, in Scotland, the sport grew popular among the working class, and team uniforms reflected these roots: Poorer Catholic clubs adopted green and white as their colors, while the Presbyterians preferred blue, red, and white.
In the late 1880s, after a Boston company introduced a new machine to manufacture fabrics with vertical lines, several teams embraced vertically-striped jerseys. Teams such as Newton Heath wore so-called “quartered” or “halved” jerseys, featuring alternating shirt colors with different panels for the left sleeve, left front, right front, and right sleeve. Eventually, this style became known as “halved,” since other teams donned jerseys with four alternating square panels on the shirt front, referred to as the “quartered” or “harlequin” style. Others began using crests, badges, or identifying caps to unite their players.
Most working-class soccer players couldn’t afford kits with elaborate designs, so their teams generally opted for simple, single-color jerseys. Beginning in 1891, British teams had to register their club colors so that no two teams would look the same on the field, and the following year, the FA required all players to have a white top to be worn in case they played a team with matching colors.
In the 1890s, the Aston Villa team was the first to adopt a shirt with contrast-color sleeves and neck bands, a style that would soon be imitated by many others. During the early 20th century, football-team jerseys often featured laced crew necks and wide vertical or horizontal striping. Manchester United debuted the pointed chevron or “V” stripe on its jerseys in 1909. That same year, the FA began requiring goalkeepers to wear a different color top—either red or blue—than their teammates.
Up through World War I, most U.K. soccer uniforms had been made by Bukta, though in 1920, a new upstart called Humphrey Brothers Clothing began competing for club business. Humphrey changed its name to Umbro in 1924, and designed its first major kit a decade later for Manchester City, which the team wore during its winning performance in the 1934 FA Cup. This was also the first competition in which players wore numbers on their jerseys, a look that would become mandatory in 1939. Collared shirts began to replace crew necks in the 1930s, such as with Arsenal’s red shirt with white sleeves and white collar, a trend that continued after a several-year hiatus during World War II.
In the early 1950s, Brazil dropped its forgettable uniform of white shorts and white shirts with blue collars, launching a newspaper contest to design a more patriotic kit. The contest required the new look incorporate the four colors of the Brazilian flag, and the victorious entry would be worn at the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland. Illustrator Aldyr Garcia Schlee came up with the winning design—a yellow jersey with a green collar and cuffs to complement blue shorts and white socks topped with a stripe of green and yellow. Four years later, after Brazil won the 1958 World Cup with help from a previously unknown 17-year-old named Edson Arantes do Nascimento (nicknamed Pelé), the yellow-and-green jerseys would become famous around the world.
Soccer jerseys made from synthetic fabrics were introduced in 1950s, beginning with the Bolton Wanderers’ shiny 1953 kit. The following year, Umbro debuted its new “Continental” style uniforms, which included jerseys with short sleeves and V-necks worn over thigh-length cotton shorts.
Crew-necked, solid-colored jerseys became popular in the 1960s, while the 1970s saw a return to more unique and identifiable uniforms. Sportswear and sponsor logos also began appearing on kits in the '70s, leading to a backlash among broadcasters in the U.K. who banned sponsored jerseys, a rule that was finally lifted in 1983. Newer companies began landing ever-more lucrative contracts for official soccer jerseys, including Adidas, Le Coq Sportif, and Hobott, and the market for replica kits—featuring a particular player’s name and number—took off.
Continue readingFootball jerseys are one part of a full kit, or uniform, that teams wear when playing soccer. From the sport’s early days, players’ knitted collarless shirts were often called “jerseys,” meaning close-fitting knitted shirts without collars, or sometimes "guernseys," describing a heavier garment or sweater typically associated with fishermen.
England’s first association football clubs formed during the 1850s and '60s, though none had specific uniform requirements. Players often wore their white cricket clothes along with a distinctively colored hat or scarf to distinguish opposing teams. The Sheffield Football Club’s 1857 rules provide the earliest known reference to football colors: "Each player must provide himself with a red and dark blue flannel cap, one colour to be worn by each side."
When England’s official Football Association (FA) was established in 1863, uniforms were still left up to each team, and most had no requirements for their players. However, with the increased visibility of England’s FA Cup in 1870, soccer clubs realized they needed clearer uniforms so fans could better tell them apart.
Most of the first team jerseys drew from the established colors of their upper-class schools or clubs, such as the Blackburn Rovers’ white jersey emblazoned with a blue Maltese cross or Reading’s jersey in its pink, blue, and burgundy colors. Meanwhile, in Scotland, the sport grew popular among the working class, and team uniforms reflected these roots: Poorer Catholic clubs adopted green and white as their colors, while the Presbyterians preferred blue, red, and white.
In the late 1880s, after a Boston company introduced a new machine to manufacture fabrics with vertical lines, several teams embraced vertically-striped jerseys. Teams such as Newton Heath wore so-called “quartered” or “halved” jerseys, featuring alternating shirt colors with different panels for the left sleeve, left front, right front, and right sleeve. Eventually, this style...
Football jerseys are one part of a full kit, or uniform, that teams wear when playing soccer. From the sport’s early days, players’ knitted collarless shirts were often called “jerseys,” meaning close-fitting knitted shirts without collars, or sometimes "guernseys," describing a heavier garment or sweater typically associated with fishermen.
England’s first association football clubs formed during the 1850s and '60s, though none had specific uniform requirements. Players often wore their white cricket clothes along with a distinctively colored hat or scarf to distinguish opposing teams. The Sheffield Football Club’s 1857 rules provide the earliest known reference to football colors: "Each player must provide himself with a red and dark blue flannel cap, one colour to be worn by each side."
When England’s official Football Association (FA) was established in 1863, uniforms were still left up to each team, and most had no requirements for their players. However, with the increased visibility of England’s FA Cup in 1870, soccer clubs realized they needed clearer uniforms so fans could better tell them apart.
Most of the first team jerseys drew from the established colors of their upper-class schools or clubs, such as the Blackburn Rovers’ white jersey emblazoned with a blue Maltese cross or Reading’s jersey in its pink, blue, and burgundy colors. Meanwhile, in Scotland, the sport grew popular among the working class, and team uniforms reflected these roots: Poorer Catholic clubs adopted green and white as their colors, while the Presbyterians preferred blue, red, and white.
In the late 1880s, after a Boston company introduced a new machine to manufacture fabrics with vertical lines, several teams embraced vertically-striped jerseys. Teams such as Newton Heath wore so-called “quartered” or “halved” jerseys, featuring alternating shirt colors with different panels for the left sleeve, left front, right front, and right sleeve. Eventually, this style became known as “halved,” since other teams donned jerseys with four alternating square panels on the shirt front, referred to as the “quartered” or “harlequin” style. Others began using crests, badges, or identifying caps to unite their players.
Most working-class soccer players couldn’t afford kits with elaborate designs, so their teams generally opted for simple, single-color jerseys. Beginning in 1891, British teams had to register their club colors so that no two teams would look the same on the field, and the following year, the FA required all players to have a white top to be worn in case they played a team with matching colors.
In the 1890s, the Aston Villa team was the first to adopt a shirt with contrast-color sleeves and neck bands, a style that would soon be imitated by many others. During the early 20th century, football-team jerseys often featured laced crew necks and wide vertical or horizontal striping. Manchester United debuted the pointed chevron or “V” stripe on its jerseys in 1909. That same year, the FA began requiring goalkeepers to wear a different color top—either red or blue—than their teammates.
Up through World War I, most U.K. soccer uniforms had been made by Bukta, though in 1920, a new upstart called Humphrey Brothers Clothing began competing for club business. Humphrey changed its name to Umbro in 1924, and designed its first major kit a decade later for Manchester City, which the team wore during its winning performance in the 1934 FA Cup. This was also the first competition in which players wore numbers on their jerseys, a look that would become mandatory in 1939. Collared shirts began to replace crew necks in the 1930s, such as with Arsenal’s red shirt with white sleeves and white collar, a trend that continued after a several-year hiatus during World War II.
In the early 1950s, Brazil dropped its forgettable uniform of white shorts and white shirts with blue collars, launching a newspaper contest to design a more patriotic kit. The contest required the new look incorporate the four colors of the Brazilian flag, and the victorious entry would be worn at the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland. Illustrator Aldyr Garcia Schlee came up with the winning design—a yellow jersey with a green collar and cuffs to complement blue shorts and white socks topped with a stripe of green and yellow. Four years later, after Brazil won the 1958 World Cup with help from a previously unknown 17-year-old named Edson Arantes do Nascimento (nicknamed Pelé), the yellow-and-green jerseys would become famous around the world.
Soccer jerseys made from synthetic fabrics were introduced in 1950s, beginning with the Bolton Wanderers’ shiny 1953 kit. The following year, Umbro debuted its new “Continental” style uniforms, which included jerseys with short sleeves and V-necks worn over thigh-length cotton shorts.
Crew-necked, solid-colored jerseys became popular in the 1960s, while the 1970s saw a return to more unique and identifiable uniforms. Sportswear and sponsor logos also began appearing on kits in the '70s, leading to a backlash among broadcasters in the U.K. who banned sponsored jerseys, a rule that was finally lifted in 1983. Newer companies began landing ever-more lucrative contracts for official soccer jerseys, including Adidas, Le Coq Sportif, and Hobott, and the market for replica kits—featuring a particular player’s name and number—took off.
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