Historical Football Kits

 

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England

1984-2001

england v argentina 1986 hand of god1984 brought a return to a more traditional look for England's kits with Umbro replacing Admiral and, as a welcome change, the team regularly qualified for the final stages of the major tournaments. High World Cup expectations were dashed by Maradona and the Hand of God in Mexico 1986, and by the Germans' superior ability in the penalty shoot-out in Italia '90.

England's European Championship campaigns were catastrophic until Euro '96, held inEngland, ended by Germany in a penalty shoot-out.

Sources:

1984-1987

england 1984 white kit

1984-1987

england 1984 red kit

1984-1987 Change

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June 1984 Tour

16 June 1985 v USA

1985 16 October v Turkey

england 1986 world cup finals white shirts

1986 World Cup Finals

england 1986 world cup finals red kit

1986 WCF Change

england 1986 world cup finals blue kit

1986 WCF Third

england 1986 world cup finals v argentina

1986 WCF v Argentina

england whiteb strip v spain 1987

18 Feb 1987 v Spain

 

Designer: Umbro

In 1982 the Admiral sportswear company was declared bankrupt and although the brand name survived under new ownership, the England contract was not renewed after it lapsed at the end of 1983. Umbro, now renewed their relationship with the FA in a world where the commercial exploitation of replica kits was becoming increasingly important. In future, shirts would have a limited shelf-life and be replaced on a regular basis.

The new designs marked a return to tradition with the reintroduction of navy blue shorts: the white shirts first appeared at the Parc des Princes on 29 February 1984 while the red version made its debut on 13 June 1984 in the game with Uruguay in Montevideo. Both shirts featured subtle pinstripe woven into the fabric and the badge was worn on the shorts for the first time. All-white kits were used against Chile and Brazil on the 1984 summer tour.

The 1986 World Cup Finals were for the second time played in Mexico and as in 1966, England commissioned a special set of strips to be made from lightweight, ventilated fabric. The designs were identical to the normal kits apart from the lack of cuffs and the addition of bolder shadow stripes. A third kit in pale blue was included but not used (although the shorts and socks were paired with the white shirt for the quarter-final game with Argentina.

1987-1989

england 1987 kit

1987-1989

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1987-1988 Change

england 1988-89 change kit

1988-1989 Change

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england 1987-89 third kit

1987-1989 Third

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23 May 1989 v Chile

6 Sept 1989 v Sweden

 

Designer: Umbro

The new Umbro design featured every innovation that a modern playing kit of the period could conceivably include. A new artificial fabric called Tactel was used throughout, which, it was claimed would keep the player comfortable regardless of climate. A subtle shadow pattern was woven into the shirt fabric partly as a fashion feature but also as a way to discourage counterfeits. The collar was a fashionable crew neck fastened with a stud and the cuffs were made in a novel block pattern (at least on the short sleeved version - long sleeved shirts were produced with red and blue rings at the cuff). The shorts had a chequered pattern woven iinto the fabric and a contrasting waist band. The finishing touch was the addition of the three lions motif on the stockings.

The red change kit mirrored the white and navy outfit once again so that all the different elements were interchangeable. Curiously this set was not introduced until 24 May 1988, the previous change kit being used twice in 1987-88 (v West Germany 9 Sept 1987 and v Israel 17 Feb 1988). The new version was unveiled at Wembley in a game with Colombia and was used only four times.

A third kit in pale blue was produced but, like its predecessor, never used.

1990-1992

england 1990-92 kit

1990-1992

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england 1990-93 change kit

1990-1993 Change

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england 1990-92 third kit

1990-1991 Third

england 1990 italia 90 kit

1990 World Cup Finals

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england italia 90 change kit

WCF 1990 Change Kit

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WCF 1990 Third Kit

June 1991 Pacific Tour

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June 1991 Pacific Tour v New Zealand

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england 1992 european championship kit

1992 European Championship

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england 1992 european championship red kit

EC 1992 Change

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england 1992 european championship blue kit

EC 1992 Third

england 1992 blue kit

1992 Third Kit

 

Designer: Umbro

The new designs introduced in the run up to the Italia '90 World Cup were clearly intended to cement the identities of Umbro and the English national team together: the trim on the sleeves, collar and shorts of these new kits was made up of Umbro's double diamond logo while abstract diamonds were incorporated into the weave of the white and red shirts. For the competition itself "FIFA WORLD CUP ITALIA '90" appeared below the badge while squad numbers were worn on the shorts. England wore their white and navy strip throughout the tournament: the red and blue alternatives did not appear.

As in previous years the elements of the white and red kits were interchageable but oddly these were only used during the Pacific tour of 1991 (England wore red tops with navy shorts in New Zealand on 3 June and all-white against Australia (1 June 1991) and Malaysia (12 June). The pale blue outfit had one airing, a European Championship qualifier in Turkey on 1 May 1991, the first time a third kit had been used since 1970.

The kits were also used in the 1992 European Championships held in Sweden. Once again a special set was produced, with "EURO 92 SWEDEN" written below the badge but only the white and navy outfit was used. For the first time squad numbers appeared on the front of players' shirts and, players' names were printed on the back of their shirts, above the numbers. The white kit was retired after the game against Turkey at Wembley on 18 November 1992.

An alternate version of the pale-blue third kit was used in twice in 1992 (25 March v Czechoslovakia and 9 September v Spain) featuring the three lions embossed into the fabric. This was the last time England used a third kit.

1993-1994

england 1993-94 kit

1993-1994

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england 1994-95 red kit

1994 Change

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Designer: Umbro

A modified crest was introduced in 1993, with a white margin surrounding the three lions motif. This appeared for the first time on 17 February 1993 against San Marino at Wembley on the new white shirt. This proved to be the most short-lived of all England outfits, and was used for the last time on 16 November 1994.

England did not use a change kit in 1993 but on 17 May 1994 they unveiled a new red strip (officially described as "wine red") in a 5-0 win over Greece at Wembley. The FA crest as well as Umbro diamonds were woven into the fabric of the shirts.

1995-1996

england 1995 white kit

1995-1996

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1995 Change

england 1996 grey kit

1996 Change

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1996 Euro '96

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1996 Euro '96 Change

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Designer: Umbro

The wine-red kit made two more appearances in 1995: on 15 February in Dublin (abandoned due to crowd disorder) and then against Brazil at Wembley in May.

The new white and navy kit was introduced on 3 June 1995 at Wembley (v Uruguay) and featured turquoise flashes. For the Euro '96 tournament, held in England, sleeves patches were worn for the first time. Squad numbers were sewn onto the front of shirts as well as shorts, which became a permanent feature. The new change kit was described by the FA as "indigo" but to everyone else it was a really dull grey. Unveiled on 27 March at Wembley, this kit is best remembered as being worn in the Euro '96 semi-final when England were eliminated by Germany on penalties. It was worn once more the following November in Georgia and was then retired.

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