Chelsea, Real Madrid, AC Milan and other clubs 09/10 Football shirts - Leaked

[Gothamite]

Wow, that's terrible.

And for the love of Pete, MLS, please take the flags off the sleeves.

Couldn't agree more. Save the flag for the scudetto, the bizarre pandering won't actually make football-haters think the sport is any less foreign.

[DGivens87]

Wow, that's terrible.

And for the love of Pete, MLS, please take the flags off the sleeves.

Couldn't agree more. Save the flag for the scudetto, the bizarre pandering won't actually make football-haters think the sport is any less foreign.

I disagree. I think the American flag is especially pertinent now that MLS clubs compete in various international tournaments like SuperLiga and CONCACAF Champions League, not to mention friendlies against foreign opponents.

And I also have to respectfully disagree with Gotham's point. Yes, the haters won't have a sudden change of heart. But, for the most part, many Americans are simply indifferent to the sport. And if they see the game being branded as American rather than foreign and give it a shot, well then why the hell not?

The Colbert Report just had a segment devoted to American soccer after the USMNT's success at the Confed Cup. You can't underestimate the strong bond that sports and patriotism share in this country. Kudos to MLS for finally waking up and taking notice.

[Gothamite]

And I also have to respectfully disagree with Gotham's point. Yes, the haters won't have a sudden change of heart. But, for the most part, many Americans are simply indifferent to the sport. And if they see the game being branded as American rather than foreign and give it a shot, well then why the hell not?

Because that way leads to clocks counting down and not up, shootouts deciding draws, and American flags cluttering up and uglifying jerseys.

Flags are great on national teams. But on club teams? Both silly and ugly.

[DGivens87]

And I also have to respectfully disagree with Gotham's point. Yes, the haters won't have a sudden change of heart. But, for the most part, many Americans are simply indifferent to the sport. And if they see the game being branded as American rather than foreign and give it a shot, well then why the hell not?

Because that way leads to clocks counting down and not up, shootouts deciding draws, and American flags cluttering up and uglifying jerseys.

Flags are great on national teams. But on club teams? Both silly and ugly.

But we've already been down that path before, and they've been since banished. And forgive me, Gothamite, but I fail to see how flags - wait, a 2" x 4" American flag patch (singular) - "clutter up" and "uglify" a jersey. I would hazard a guess and say that a gaudy Red Bull or Best Buy chest logo would assume that role much better.

Plus, do American flags on jerseys really reflect the same kind of bastardization of the beautiful game as clocks that count down and tie-breaking shootouts? An American flag on a soccer jersey? Really?

[Gothamite]

Only in as far as they're pandering to some odd patriotic impulse in a pathetic attempt to spur interest.

And yes, they do clutter up the jersey. That other things do as well does not change that.

[DGivens87]

Only in as far as they're pandering to some odd patriotic impulse in a pathetic attempt to spur interest.

And yes, they do clutter up the jersey. That other things do as well does not change that.

1. If patriotic impulse equals more cash - which it often does (see MLB's Stars and Stripes promo) - then it's a smart move by MLS. As a fellow soccer/football fan, you have to admit that MLS has fallen flat on its face many a time when it comes to promotion.

2. I guess we'll agree to disagree. The American flag on an MLS jersey doesn't bother me any more than a flag decal on an NFL helmet.

[Gothamite]

Oh, sure. You had to bring up the cluttered NFL helmets....

[-kj]

The flag is dumb on any non-national-team jersey or other article in any sport, though I am a bit more ok with national symbols as title patches, such as the scudetto.

I am hypocritical about the Catalan flag on the back of Barca's collars, though. I think that's cool.

[schtee]

The American flag doesn't clutter things up on the basketball jerseys of teams in the ACC. What creates clutter on jerseys/kits is unnecessary piping and its ilk.

[Gothamite]

It's not an either/or. There are plenty of ways to ruin a jersey design. Piping and unnecessary patches are but two.

[-kj]

The phrase "unnecessary piping" is dumb. Is any type of decoration on a jersey really "necessary"? Sure, some make the jersey more aesthetically pleasing than others, but in the end, none of it is truly necessary.

[Kess]

Celtic will be unveiling its away kit July 20. They're dropping not-so-subtle hints with things like this at the team store:

They're also selling merchandise in the colors of volt and black, like this ball:

[-kj]

Seems to have already been leaked:

They remind me of an alternate shirt they used to have, but I can't seem to find a picture of it. However, while searching, I came across this:

Egad. It's said to be the away shirt from 1991-92; I hadn't seen it before.

[Gothamite]

Looks like Arsenal's not the only club to abandon its classic contrasting sleeves:

[chestnutz]

I'm forever claret and blue? They choose that slogan the year they get rid of the blue sleeves? What the hell? Umbro has been super hit (Man City, England) or miss (West Ham) this year.

[officeglenn]

I'm forever claret and blue? They choose that slogan the year they get rid of the blue sleeves? What the hell? Umbro has been super hit (Man City, England) or miss (West Ham) this year.

Hell, even this would be a classy kit were it for just about any club but West Ham (or Aston Villa, I suppose).

[kid_17]

A few pages back I mentioned Chivas had altered its classic logo, simplifying it by removing some colors. Addition by subtraction I guess. There has been a pretty big backlash against the new crest but the higher ups are holding firm with the change. Anyway, back then I didnt have a good view of the new mark (and I still dont) but heres a good enough view:

For comparison the old crest, a variation of which is used by Chivas USA:

[Kess]

Seems to have already been leaked:

They remind me of an alternate shirt they used to have, but I can't seem to find a picture of it. However, while searching, I came across this:

Egad. It's said to be the away shirt from 1991-92; I hadn't seen it before.

Yep, it's a shirt they used 1994-96-ish. Here's a photo:

[-kj]

Hm, I don't know if that's the one I was thinking, though it's close. The one I'm thinking of also had some wacky sublimated stuff going on in the stripes.

[Saintsfan]

West ham have abandoned the sky blue sleeves for a season or two before. I would expect the next strip to include them again. It seems odd to me though that neither the home or away kit feature the sky blue prominently.

Now here is a homer for me. My own Southampton (AKA the Saints) away strip

Badge detail includes a similar detail to the Sunderland home hit

I quiote like the kit personally.