All eyes are on PSG and Inter as the two clubs prepare to face each other in the Champions League final. Both sides enjoyed memorable runs on the road to Munich, and for PSG in particular their campaign has been dominated by appearances of their all blue fourth kit.
Despite the prevalence of the winged, Jordan branded shirt for Les Rouge-et-Bleu, the team will switch back to their familiar home shirt for the big final and should the French team manage to capture a maiden Champions League title their base look will be further etched into footballing history.
Things could have been different on the kit front though, as PSG have not always donned the same home colours…
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Have PSG always played in blue shirts with a red stripe?
As already mentioned, the answer is no! Though blue has been a key part of PSG’s identity, the club actually started out life in 1970 playing in predominantly red shirts with blue and white accents (The team would later nod to this original look with a red home shirt in 2010/11).
After a few seasons in red Les Parisiens adopted their iconic blue and red shirts (more on them in a moment), but interestingly the team would make another switch in 1981 favouring white shirts with red and blue vertical stripes as the home look. The change would bring good fortune as PSG won back-to-back French Cups in 1982 and 1983, before winning a league title in 1986.
Blue and red would become the default look again in 1993 and the team haven’t looked back since.
Why are PSG’s colours blue, red and white?
PSG’s colours have deeper meanings.
At a surface level the blue, red and white of the team’s kits mirror the French flag, but as you break it down further the red and blue are colours closely associated with Paris in particular (the flag of Paris is blue and red). White meanwhile is linked to the royal town of Saint-Germain-en-Laye.
With PSG themselves representing both Paris and Saint-Germain-en-Laye having been formed as a merge between Paris FC and Stade Saint-Germain, the blue, red and white colours carry with them the origins of the team.
What is the story behind PSG’s home kit?
The iconic PSG home shirt of a blue base with a central, white-trimmed red stripe is called the “Hechter”, named after fashion designer Daniel Hechter who designed the shirt during his short tenure as club president in the 1970s.
Legend has it that the PSG home shirt was a twist on the legendary Ajax home shirt, but Hechter would later clarify that the design wasn’t primarily a nod to the Dutch giants but rather that it was inspired by the Ford Mustang. The long hood of the Mustang often sported a central stripe or two, and Hechter took this idea and ran with it.
Like most clubs PSG have experimented with their home shirt style, with several designs removing the white stripes altogether. Several alternate and goalkeeper kits have also employed Hechter-like elements, including the 2019/20 fourth kit which boasted a French flag in place of the Hechter.
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If you want to find out why Newcastle wear black and white stripes, or why AC Milan play in red and black stripes, check out the other entries in our Why They Wear series.
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