Adam. Football shirt collector. Too many shirts, not enough wardrobe space. Latest addition to
@TheyThinkKits
. Find me on Instagram as well, if you like!
Seeing as I’ve got them all, I figured I’d do a breakdown of the new MLS Archive Collection, because there are some interesting differences between them (if you’re a boring kit nerd like me, anyway).
(These are all the authentic’ versions btw)
First up Sporting Kansas City!
New addition: Pumas UNAM 2016/17 home.
A shirt I’ve been after in my size for a while - as a librarian, getting hold of a shirt that’s inspired by a library is a must! The graphic is based on the mural from the National Autonomous University of Mexico’s Central Library 😎
My biggest tip for any new collector is to have a browse of the CFS website, and if you come across a shirt you like head to eBay and find it for a fraction of the price.
New In | Barcelona 2016 Home 🌟
Available in sizes Small to XL, we've just added the 2016 Barcelona home to the site!
Remembered for the amazing comeback vs PSG and Messi's 500th Barca goal.
🌍 Worldwide Shipping
🛒 Shop Here -
If this was a Borussia Monchengladbach shirt then 90% of football shirt twitter would be all over it (including me). Brilliant design from Puma/PAFC (and bonus points for how well the sponsor fits AND the story behind said sponsor).
CFS have a 20% sale, so here are my top tips for getting the best out of this offer!
1: go onto the CFS website
2: find a shirt you want
3: go onto eBay and search for that shirt - it’ll still be cheaper than CFS even with 20% off
Gaming x Football 🎮⚽️
(Yes I know I’m stretching it slightly using a Sony Juve shirt, but until I get one of those natty PS2 Auxerre shirts, this’ll have to do)
Until yesterday, this may well have been the most sought after shirt from the World Cup. Sure, it never saw gametime in Qatar but that doesn’t take away from the design. The Argentina home is iconic because of what happened on the pitch, this is iconic because JUST LOOK AT IT.
Not often I’d describe spending £102 on a football shirt as a “bargain” but getting a mint condition 1989 Norwich away shirt for cheaper than a new Dri-Fit Adv shirt is absolutely a bargain in my book.
So there you go - all of the MLS Archive Collection, in all their glory. Personally I think it’s one of the best football shirt collections released for a long, long time. My only criticism is I’d love to see the rest of MLS get this treatment!
It’s not that Macron are perfect - all kit manufacturers have good & bad designs. But they’re not afraid to take risks and a lot of the time they come off. They do classy, they do bold, they do everything in-between. For me they’ve become one of the best in the business!
So many badge rebrands happening, and nothing looks as good as the stuff coming out of the NWSL or USL leagues. I mean jeez, San Diego have two teams with incredible badges. Just look at them. And not a circular badge in sight.
Never thought I'd achieve this collecting goal, yet here we are! Shout out to past me for buying the home 20 years ago for under £20 (!), the person on eBay for the white away and
@LewisCaswell
for the yellow third. The best trio of shirts we've ever had, I'm absolutely in awe 😍
The difference in sponsor applications between the authentic and the standard is wild. The standard looks really cheap with the big green box surrounding the logos. I wonder what the reasoning is?
California Surf by
@admiral1914
. The joint-oldest shirt in my collection, alongside a New York Cosmos shirt from the same era. Also one of only a handful of shirts actually older than me 😅
Guarantee you're not seeing a better football shirt on your timelines today. Score a goal? Lift it over your head to reveal a doggo. Can your Netherlands '88 do that?!
Thanks to
@phildelves
for selling it, and thanks to me for being small enough to fit in a Japanese Medium 😀
Seeing as the
@TheyThinkKits
top kits of the year pod is out, here’s my top 10 for 2022! Starting with number 10, the Coventry third. I only collect Liverpool and Norwich from English teams, which is a shame as this shirt is incredible.
New addition: Barcelona away 22/23. This is one of the most beautiful shirts I have ever seen 😍 The colour is stunning, the details (especially in dri-fit adv) are out of this world and the Olympic-inspired cuffs are the cherry on the cake. A modern classic!
A few weeks back I tweeted that I’d successfully managed to get hold of every commercially-available Liverpool shirt since 1981 (excluding this season - absolutely waiting for a price drop…)
That wasn’t *strictly* true, as I didn’t own this one…until now!
Happy birthday to the iconic USA 1994 away shirt, first worn 30 years ago this week in a friendly vs Bolivia.
You can keep your Netherlands 88s and your Denmark 86s, for me this is the greatest international shirt of all time 🇺🇸⭐️
Absolutely worth being patient for, and hoping that adidas would do a restock. Firstly, I think it’s a smart shirt - as were most of the adidas World Cup kits (not you, Belgium home). Secondly, it’s a piece of football history!
Dear
@LFC
and
@Nike
. It’s not too late (okay, it probably is). But I’m telling you; the shirt on the right is a license to print money. Fix the collar, set the swoosh straight, soften the pattern, it’s all we ask 😅
Me: CFS are vastly overpriced and their practice of buying up cheap stock on eBay and selling for 400% profit is abhorrent.
Also me: CFS 20% off sale? I’m there!!!!!!
Say what you want about Nike, this is a brilliant selection of kits. Every single one is (in my personal opinion obviously) fantastic. Yes, even the home.
New addition: Flamengo 1990/91 (I think, anyway - variations of this design were worn for a number of seasons from 1987 onwards!)
The simple fact is, NOTHING beats an adidas trefoil. Nothing.
I can’t tell if I think this is the best new MLS kit or the worst new MLS kit. I’m thinking I like it. It’s certainly something, anyway.
(Also the new badge is nowhere as good as the old-old badge, but streets ahead of the old badge)
I was going to wait for CF Montreal to release official images of their new home shirt before doing this but they're taking forever - so I'm just going for it: my own personal rankings of all the new
@MLS
kits!
What's the phrase? Dislikers are absolutely going to dislike? Who knows. What I do know is I absolutely love this shirt and in 30 years time, when I'm 68, I'll look cool af wearing it and all the young kitsters will be jealous. Probably.
Only one shirt related gift this year (I buy enough of them, it's nicer to get other things 😅)
Anyhoo, my wife snuck onto my Google drive, downloaded an image I'd made for Instagram and had it turned into a lovely mousemat. Which is all kinds of excellent 😍
New addition: France home, as worn at Euro 96.
Thoughts: 90s adidas is THE BEST and laces on football shirts are COOL and knitted-style collars are HIP and SOPHISTICATED.
Someone at Nike needs to have a serious word with themselves, these collars are dreadful (and I know the Liverpool home and third are going to be ruined by them).
Pics courtesy of
@esvaphane
Just saw this on Instagram - I knew the Japanese team were tidying up after their games but I didn’t realise they were leaving notes and origami cranes too 😭
All this talk of
@MLS
kits has made me think of one of the jewels of my collection: the Kansas City Wizards third shirt from 1997. As close to perfection as you can get from a football shirt imo…I mean just look at those SLEEVES. Ridiculously beautiful.
All of the shirts feature the adidas logo sewn in - on the ‘authentics’ the stitching is raised, and it’s great. On the Kansas shirt the Wizards text is also raised.
Onto Inter Miami, which is clearly inspired by the Miami Dolphins colourway! These are also widely available with Messi 10 printing so you get to see the new name and numbest for these kits.
New addition: AS Saint-Étienne 95-98.
It’s green, it’s got laces, it’s long-sleeve and it’s made by lotto, one of the most 90s brands around. What’s not to love?!
2022 in review: It’s been a pretty good year collecting wise. A mix of Liverpool, 2022 World Cup, adidas classics and two that can definitely be described as grail purchases. A very adidas-heavy year!
I like Hummel. I do. But the new Denmark shirts. Releasing a ‘red-out’ third shirt based on the ‘86 design, then following it up with a ‘red-out’ home shirt based on the ‘92 design…I mean it feels a little bit lazy to me?
New addition: Benfica away 23/24 🔵🟡⚪️🟢🔴
This was in my
@TheyThinkKits
Top 5 for 2023, so I’m pleased to have finally picked it up. My first ever Portuguese club team shirt as well, believe it or not!