Historical Football Kits

Npower Championship 2011 - 2012

In 2009-10 the Football League clubs collectively recorded losses of £600m while being £700m in debt, 80% of which is owed by Championship clubs. While these figures are dwarfed by those of the Premier League (Roman Abramovich has thrown £734m into Chelsea alone) they are cause for concern. Member clubs voted in June to adopt a salary cap (based on a percentage of turnover) and a version of UEFA's Fair Play regulations that require clubs to meet their running costs out of their turnover. These arrangements already apply in League Two.

The Football League seems to have relaxed its rules and is permitting clubs to register similar shorts for home and away kits, provided that an alternate set is available when there is a clash.

(Contributors are credited in brackets. Opinions expressed on this page are those of HFK and not contributors.)

Barnsley

Designer: Nike

Sponsor: CK Beckett

Barnsley generally go in for plain home strips and they don't come much simpler than this new Nike outfit, which seems to have been well received. The faint shadow stripes on the away kit look positively racy in comparison.

(Graham Siddons)

Birmingham City

Designer: Xtep

Sponsor: RationalFX

The Blues, relegated last season, consulted their support before commissioning a satisfyingly simple all-blue home kit, a refreshing change from the over-complicated outfits worn in recent years. The enigmatic away kit is much more adventurous, made in charcoal and a sort of dark teal blue (possibly "atomic gooseberry" if Xtep are following the lead of other manufacturers in giving ludicrous names to their new colours). This kit never appeared and was officially dropped in March, upsetting all those supporters who had shelled out 40 quid for a replica.

By winning lasts season's Carling Cup, City have secured a place in the Europa Cup qualifiers, which requires a third kit to be introduced. The white shorts and socks are the alternative set from the home kit. This was used as a change strip instead of the striped shirt.

A new Chinese sponsor had been lined up but details were withheld for legal reasons. That is to say the club's owner, Carson Yeung faces 14 years in a Hong Kong prison for money laundering if convicted and investors were understandably a little nervous about getting involved. In the end a London based money transfer company got their name on the shirts.

(Harry Meadows, Nick Foster, Richard Evans)

Blackpool

Designer: Fila

Sponsor: Wonga

A change of manufacturer has not resulted in much of a rethink at Blackpool. Old fashioned collars, slightly different trim on the shorts and socks and logos are all that distinguish this season's kit from last.

(Clabbe)

Brighton & Hove Albion

Designer: Errea

Sponsor: BrightonandHoveJobs.com

At long last, Brighton have their own ground once again, the romantically named American Express Community Stadium, opened on 30 July with a friendly against Spurs, a fitting start to their return to the second tier. A special commemorative kit was produced for this match.

The new away strip is in an unsettling lime green but the home strip is a more reassuringly traditional affair, harking back to the Seventies but with a bit of old gold trim to celebrate. The popular circular badge worn at the time is also revived although the seagull is now flying in the opposite direction. Presumably this reflects the board's ambitions.

(Al Gordon, Luke Conboy, James Clyde, Christopher Worrall)

Bristol City

Designer: Adidas

Sponsor: Resource Solutions Group (H), Bristol City Community Trust (A)

The new yellow and navy away kit is a novel look for the Robins, who have donated the shirt sponsorship to their own, newly formed community trust. There are no surprises with the home kit, simply updated to one of Adidas' latest designs. A new sponsor gives the shirt a different look that is likely to help with replica sales.

(Andrew Mihaleff, Mark Leech)

Burnley

Designer: Puma

Sponsor: Fun88

After the fine, retro-inspired kits seen over the last two seasons it is perhaps inevitable that Burnley would ring the changes this season with something a bit more contemporary. The new Puma template looks quite good in Burnley's traditional colours. The new away shirt is "lemon chrome" no less, and is sometimes worn with yellow rather than claret shorts/socks.

(Ralph Pomeroy)

Cardiff City

Designer: Puma

Sponsor: Malaysia

After spending much of last season in an automatic promotion place, fans were bitterly disappointed as the team ran out of steam and then failed to negotiate the play-offs. The fact that Swansea City have now overtaken the Bluebirds and have reached the Premier League makes it even worse.

The new shirt sponsorship marks the club's ties with Malaysia where an academy has been established by City's Malaysian owners. The spectacular third kit was launched in October.

(Luke Richards, James Clyde, Ramazan Karsak)

Coventry City

Designer: Puma

Sponsor: City Link

To mark the fiftieth anniversary of Jimmy Hill's "Sky Blue Revolution," Coventry and Puma have designed a recreation of the iconic strip unveiled in 1962. The retro crest is used just on the home strip and is a modern reinterpretation of the original The green and black away strip, itself a recreation of a popular outfit from the Seventies, is retained.

The retro theme is taken even further with the introduction of a replica of the striped strip worn when Coventry won the FA Cup 25 years ago. This outfit is used exclusively in the FA Cup and the 1,987 (geddit?) limited edition replicas sold to fans are without the City Link logo.

(Simon Ståål, Phil Arnold, Robbie Heer)

Crystal Palace

Designer: Nike

Sponsor: GAC Logistics

There is a slightly disconcerting look to Nike's latest offering due to the zigzag stripes. The strip was chosen in an on-line poll of supporters: mind you they were only offered a choice of two. The away kit is all-yellow and not in the colours of Brazil as we previously reported.

(Andrew Mihaleff)

Derby County

Designer: Derby County

Sponsor: buy mobiles.net

Derby have gone for a standard template from Adidas' latest catalogue. Again. That said, the new away kit is in purple, an unconventional colour that looks rather well with white Adidas trim.

(Al Gordon)

Doncaster Rovers

Designer: Nike

Sponsor: One Call Insurance

Aside from the black trimmings, Rovers' new home shirt is identical to last season. Red shorts and socks were mooted but there appears to have been a change of heart and black was worn when the season started.

(Craig Morris, Christopher Worrall)

Hull City

Designer: Adidas

Sponsor: Cash Converters

Like Stoke, who wear an identical template, Hull have dropped last season's fussy stripes in favour of Adidas' latest, much cleaner design.

The choice of pale blue and white for the change kit is a pleasing one. Hull have worn these colours as their first choice twice in the past. The sponsor's logo was originally to appear on a black patch (like the home strip) but after complaints from fans a more streamlined design was introduced. Navy shorts are sometimes worn with this strip.

(Lee Capeling, Ramazan Karsak, Ben Foster)

Ipswich Town

Designer: Mitre

Sponsor: Marcus Evans

Pinstripes are a popular motif at Portman Road because they were worn during the Bobby Robson era and they make another appearance this season two years after they were last revived. The black away and red third strips are unchanged.

(Bruce E. Bailey, Bennyboygersh)

Leeds United

Designer: Macron

Sponsor: Enterprise Insurance

The possibility of promotion to the Premier League where rules on disclosure of who owns clubs are more stringent led to Ken Bates announcing he had bought the club from its anonymous owners. Bates had, you will recall, earlier stated that he owned Leeds only to announce shortly afterwards that he had made a mistake and didn't own it at all. It's very easy to lose track of these things.

Aside from the new sponsorship, there is not much different on the home strip to last season's but supporters still have to shell out £40 for the shirt. The third strip is last season's away kit recycled with the new sponsor while the away is black with bright neon yellow trim - a break with tradition and perhaps one of the most unpleasant strips of the season.

(Martin, Ben, Richard Meir)

Leicester City

Designer: Burrda

Sponsor: King Power

There are no surprises with the latest kits designed by Burrda for the Foxes: neat and tidy with just enough detailing to make them identifiable. The away strip is all white, one of several examples where the Football League have permitted similar shorts to be registered for both home and away strips. Blue shorts are available and can be worn with either set when necessary.

(Josh Bayliss, Dominic Brewin, Brett Brown)

Middlesbrough

Designer: Away

Sponsor: Ramsdens

According to the club's press release, the new Middlesbrough home shirt marks the return of the white yoke worn by George Camsell when he scored 59 goals for 'Boro in 1926-27. It's not just a bog-standard Adidas template then - no, not at all. The away strip is in fashionable all-black with red trimmings.

(James Smith)

Millwall

Designer: Macron

Sponsor: Racing+

Last season Millwall revived their original navy and white colours. This seems to have proved popular because this season it is being retained and this time the home kit is all-navy, possibly a reference to the kits worn when they became Millwall Athletic in 1893. The away kit should also be popular as it revives the all-white strip worn in the late Sixties. The gold third strip was worn for the first time at Crystal Palace on 26 November.

(Danny Harding, Mark Alden, Richard Rundle)

Nottingham Forest

Designer: Umbro

Sponsor: Victor Chandler

Umbro are producing some well designed, retro-influenced kits under their "Tailored" brand of which these are fine examples. The dinky collars of the home shirt resemble those worn by the team in the early years of the twentieth century.

(Lee Fenton)

Peterborough United

Designer: Nike

Sponsor: Peterborough Energy Park

The new black away strip was worn for the first time when Posh beat Huddersfield in the League One play-off final last season so is well on its way to being a firm favourite. The home strip revives the contrasting sleeves worn when Peterborough were elected to the Football League in 1960 now in Nike's Classic III template. The white third strip can be worn with the black away shorts and socks when necessary.

(Andrew Mihaleff, Richard Caulkett, Bruce E Bailey)

Portsmouth

Designer: Kappa

Sponsor: Jobsite

Portsmouth's latest away strip is almost identical to the third kit from last season but with rather more blue trim. Kappa's outfits are cut to flatter the physique of professional footballers and the club's web site cautions supporters (twice) to order shirts a couple of sizes too large for "a looser fit." Spotting supporters with generous midriffs squeezed into a Kappa shirt is one of the great pleasures of the season. The home strip is about as traditional and simple as you could wish for apart from those oversize Kappa logos. The third strip re-creates a style worn between 1993 and 1995.

(Ben Surry, Andrew Mihaleff, Ben Surry)

Reading

Designer: Puma

Sponsor: Waitrose

Puma's new hooped template bears a close resemblance to the strips Reading wore in the late Seventies and early Eighties, allowing the club to market the home strip as a retro kit. Greenock Morton are wearing an identical strip.

(James Clyde)

Southampton

Designer: Umbro

Sponsor: A A P 3 Ltd

Promoted in their 125th anniversary season, the Saints return to the usual striped shirts, worn with white sleeves and shoulders. The red socks with white turnovers are perhaps a mistake as they make the strip look too much like a Sunderland outfit. Yellow and blue return in the away kit, always a popular choice with fans.

(Al Gordon)

Watford

Designer: Burrda

Sponsor: Burrda

It's back to red shorts for Watford this season. The away strip is made in the same template but in white. Yellow doesn't really work teamed with white unless a third, contrasting colour is used, in this case black.

(Al Gordon)

West Ham United

Designer: Macron

Sponsor: SBO Bet

Fans disappointed at last season's relegation can take heart from these two fine recreations of Hammers' kits from their 1960s heyday, although for my money they are somewhat spoilt by excessive detailing.

Last season's away shirt was worn with the current home shorts and socks at Crystal Palace on 1 October.

(Andrew Mihaleff, David Rafelle)