It’s a question we get asked almost daily: what’s our favourite football shirt? When you see as many as we do, that’s virtually impossible to answer. We love so many of them.
But there are some that steal our heart that little bit more than others. The ones that raise our pulses when they land at our door and make us feel tinged with regret when we see it leave for a better home.
We asked each of our team to select five - just five - shirts that fall into that category. These aren’t necessarily our ‘Top Five’, but five shirts we’ve got mad love for, whatever the reasons.
So for edition '04’ of The Cult Kits View, we asked Co-Owner of Cult Kits, David Jones, to tell us about his top five favourites.
So here they are…
Manchester United 1993-95
When you look at this shirt you remember one thing and one thing alone. That’s good old Eric, leaping into a crowd of Palace fans and putting one fan in particular, back in their place. Now, we’re not condoning these actions by a very angry Cantona. However, I won’t deny those actions weren’t re-enacted amongst friends during the evening and weekend kick-about. I’d never seen a kit that was all black before. Accompanied with the cool trims of yellow and blue with a faded Umbro repeat pattern – this shirt, for me at least, is peak 90’s Umbro – it’s a work of art.
Nagoya Grampus 1991-92
We love the J-League here at Cult Kits, so it would be unacceptable for me to not include one in my top five. My first experience of the J-League was when Gary Lineker signed for Nagoya Grampus. I was mesmerised by their shirts and graphic club badges, which eventually lead me back to the 1991-92 home shirt from Mizuno. The shirt with its own name as the sponsor on the front completes the design.
England 1996-97
What a summer this was! The summer refutably labelled as when ‘football almost came home’. It took me years to forgive old Gareth for that nervous penalty shambles. Now, this shirt simply represents a night of excitement and what could have been for England at Euro 96. Again, a shirt colour scheme I’d not witnessed before, not to mention a centred badge and logo. Like a fine wine, this shirt has only got better with age.
Gremio 1991
Massive badge, massive brand patch and a f#*cking massive-great, Coca Cola sponsor across the middle. What’s more, the colourway of the stripes is enough to make you fall in love with football on their own.
Aston Villa 1990-92
This shirt is one that sets Umbro out against the rest. It’s a template that the ‘double diamond’ lot, used for several teams across the top flight, ahead of the formation of the Premier League, the following season. But it was Villa’s colours, that always stuck in my mind. Alongside their old club badge, you can get lost in the details of this shirt there are so many. It’s one of those designs that has bought my brand loyalty with Umbro when it comes to football shirts. It’s one I don’t imagine will ever be broken.
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