Often described as the best league in the world, the colours of the Premier League are some of the most recognisable in football. Come with us as we take a look at each club’s kits.
Red & White (Arsenal) - Arsenal first wore redcurrant shirts which were donated by Nottingham Forest but soon changed to red with white sleeves, which we know them for today. There are two versions of how this combination was chosen by Herbert Chapman. One is that he saw a supporter wearing a red sleeveless jumper over a white shirt. The other is that it was inspired by an outfit worn by cartoonist, Tom Webster.
Claret & Blue (Aston Villa) - Villa were the first club to wear claret and blue but before then they wore a combination of colours including royal blue, scarlet, sky blue and chocolate. Their first kit had a rule that no member could take part in a match without wearing the full uniform, which included royal blue caps.
Red & Black (Bournemouth) - Rumour has it that Bournemouth came to wear cherry red due to Dean Court being built adjacent to the Copper-Dean estate which is believed to have contained many cherry trees. Which leads to the club's nickname as well. Bournemouth have had a combination of red and white stripes, all red and black and red striped shirts in their history.
Blue & White (Brighton) - Brighton first wore all-blue shirts until their second year in the Southern League First Division, where they introduced the white stripes which they still wear today. They have varied styles of shirts including white sleeves with blue base, white pinstripes and all-white home shirts.
Blue (Chelsea) - Chelsea’s first chrome shirts were ‘Eton blue’ which were the racing colours of then club president Earl Cadogan. This was replaced by Royal Blue in 1912 and was worn with white shorts and blue or black socks. Manager Tommy Docherty changed the colours again in the 1960s to blue shorts and white socks.
Red & Blue (Crystal Palace) - Palace first wore light blue and white half-and-half shirts and then switched to claret and blue due to the important role of the club’s foundation by Edmund Goodman, an ex-Villa employee. They mixed this combination with all-white shirts until 1963. The Eagles didn't use their current colour combination of blue and red stripes until 1973, which was inspired by Barcelona.
Orange & White (Luton Town) - Luton Town have been known by two colour combinations throughout their history, white & black and orange, white and blue. They mainly wore white home shirts with trims of black, orange and blue. Since 2009, The Hatters have changed their home shirt colours to an orange base with white and navy accents.
Light Blue (Manchester City) - City’s original colours were black shirts with a white cross, when they were known as St Marks, and reflected their Chruch team origins. This was published in a 1940 book titled Famous Football Clubs - Manchester City. They moved over to blue shirts in 1892, although the origins of why this is are unclear. The Cityzens have used varying shades of sky blue throughout the years on their home shirts.
Red (Manchester Utd) - To this day mystery surrounds United’s first colours. White shirts with a blue “cord” have been mentioned along with the famous half-and-half green and gold shirts, although there is pictorial evidence to black these up. The red of United was first worn after the club changed its name from Newton Heath LYR Football Club. The red, white & black have remained apart from a brief spell of a white shirt with a red chevron, which was used from 1922-27.
Black & White (Newcastle United) - Newcastle United’s first colours were red shirts with white shorts and red socks, which were the home colours of Newcastle East End. In 1984 the famous black and white stripes were adopted which had been used by the reserve team. The reason these colours were chosen was because neither had been used by the two teams that had merged to create Newcastle United.
White (Spurs) - Before wearing the white shirts we know Spurs for, they have worn several different colour combinations during their history. Starting with navy shirts, then changing to quartered shirts similar to Blackburn Rovers. Spurs have also had red shirts with navy shorts and were known as the “Tottenham Reds” and have also had a chocolate and gold kit. In 1898 they finally switched to their current colours and haven’t looked back since.
Gold & Black (Wolves) - The gold and black worn by Wolves allude to the Wolverhampton city council’s motto “Out of darkness cometh light”. The club’s original colours were red and white stripes which were taken from the colours of St Luke’s, which was the club’s first name when they were formed in 1877.
As beautiful as the colours of the Premier League are, we don’t only stock shirts from that league. Head to our website to browse the thousands of retro shirts we have to offer.
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