Yes, it's true, the first goal of the World Cup was Brazil scoring on itself. But at least they did it in style. For the next few weeks, soccer players will be donning their national kits with pride: loose-fitting shorts, jerseys with sleeves, long socks, and that implacable aura of laid-back cool. Unlike swimwear (which was once made of wool) the look hasn’t transformed dramatically over the years. But it does have its story to tell.
“From about the '20s to the '60s there wasn’t a ton of change. You would see teams wearing the same jerseys for years in a row, simple, clean, beautiful,” said George Quraishi, a founder and editor of the soccer magazine Howler. Systematic numbering on the backs of the shirts wasn’t even introduced until the 1954 World Cup.
Some sartorial standouts have been Brazil 1970, a simple yellow shirt with rainforest-green arm bands, and Netherlands 1974, a deep, molten orange with black stripes.
1980s soccer kits were defined by, what else, short shorts. “Oh my god, you’re almost seeing cheek. That’s one look I do not see coming back," said Calen Carr, a professional soccer player who has played for the Houston Dynamo and the Chicago Fire and who now runs the Instagram project @fiftytofourteen.
1994 gave us the gift of the USA denim kit: loud, tacky, patriotic, and fondly remembered as the ugliest uniform of all the time. That year also gave us Mexican goalie Jorge Campos' wild neon kit (that we love) and Nigeria's "dollar bill" design.
Everything changed in 2000, when Major League Soccer started allowing advertising on jerseys. Now, strict FIFA regulations determine many design decisions. A 92-page document outlines minute details, such as logo placement, down to the centimeter. It’s no fashion joke––one year Cameroon opted for a onesie and accrued serious penalties.
Technology also now plays a major role in the design of a jersey. “They’ve gotten a lot lighter. You almost feel like you don’t have anything on,” said Carr.
Linda Tain, a professor of fashion art, design, and history of clothing at FIT, said about this year’s uniforms, “It’s a lot about color-blocking [and] stripes, both diagonal and horizontal and vertical. Some are doing it well and some are over-processing.”
“One of the most beautiful is the German shirt,” she continued, “which is a very symmetrical, dipped stripe. It’s high on the chest so it focuses on the player’s face, even though it's mostly white. Its graphic is strong and it has a very dynamic feel to it.”
The Belgian shirt, however, is “a little much of a hodgepodge. It has good bones and could develop into something that makes a statement. Right now, it’s a work in progress,” said Tain.
“France
“From about the '20s to the '60s there wasn’t a ton of change. You would see teams wearing the same jerseys for years in a row, simple, clean, beautiful,” said George Quraishi, a founder and editor of the soccer magazine Howler. Systematic numbering on the backs of the shirts wasn’t even introduced until the 1954 World Cup.
Some sartorial standouts have been Brazil 1970, a simple yellow shirt with rainforest-green arm bands, and Netherlands 1974, a deep, molten orange with black stripes.
1980s soccer kits were defined by, what else, short shorts. “Oh my god, you’re almost seeing cheek. That’s one look I do not see coming back," said Calen Carr, a professional soccer player who has played for the Houston Dynamo and the Chicago Fire and who now runs the Instagram project @fiftytofourteen.
1994 gave us the gift of the USA denim kit: loud, tacky, patriotic, and fondly remembered as the ugliest uniform of all the time. That year also gave us Mexican goalie Jorge Campos' wild neon kit (that we love) and Nigeria's "dollar bill" design.
Everything changed in 2000, when Major League Soccer started allowing advertising on jerseys. Now, strict FIFA regulations determine many design decisions. A 92-page document outlines minute details, such as logo placement, down to the centimeter. It’s no fashion joke––one year Cameroon opted for a onesie and accrued serious penalties.
Technology also now plays a major role in the design of a jersey. “They’ve gotten a lot lighter. You almost feel like you don’t have anything on,” said Carr.
Linda Tain, a professor of fashion art, design, and history of clothing at FIT, said about this year’s uniforms, “It’s a lot about color-blocking [and] stripes, both diagonal and horizontal and vertical. Some are doing it well and some are over-processing.”
“One of the most beautiful is the German shirt,” she continued, “which is a very symmetrical, dipped stripe. It’s high on the chest so it focuses on the player’s face, even though it's mostly white. Its graphic is strong and it has a very dynamic feel to it.”
The Belgian shirt, however, is “a little much of a hodgepodge. It has good bones and could develop into something that makes a statement. Right now, it’s a work in progress,” said Tain.
“France