Borussia Dortmund Home Shirt

Before I start on this brilliant shirt, I know what you’re thinking. Seattle Sounders, UNAM Pumas and now Borussia Dortmund – am I the biggest football hipster of all time? Yes, I probably am!

If you follow me on Twitter (and if you don’t, why don’t you?!) you’ll probably have seen me enquiring about Dortmund shirts recently. Again, they have very iconic kits and I’ve been after a BVB shirt for a while. Fortunately I walked into Sports Direct and they had some on the shelves in my size. They even undercharged me £10, result!

When I first saw this kit revealed in the summer, I wasn’t a fan. It has definitely grown on me though and shows Puma really do know how to make an iconic kit even more striking without going too over the top and losing the identity.

If you’re a football fan, you’ll know all about BVB. They’re one of the most successful German clubs in history (despite their awful start to this campaign) having won eight German championships, three DFB-Pokals, five DFL-Supercups, one UEFA Champions League, one UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, and one Intercontinental Cup. They also have the coolest man on the planet as their manager – the fantastic Jurgen Klopp.

Their Signal Iduna Park home is brilliant and always has a fantastic atmosphere created by the ‘Yellow Wall’. I’m definitely hoping to get to a Dortmund game one day because let’s face it, the Germans just do football better than us English.

UNAM Pumas Away Shirt

Another club to hit the blog for the second time and let’s be honest, they completely deserve it. Much like the Sounders, UNAM Pumas have some of the most unique kits in world football which is why I couldn’t resist this one.

You can read more about the club and see my Pumas third shirt here. This was their awesome away shirt in the 2012-13 season and now I’m just a home shirt off completing the set! It’s just a shame they ditched Puma for Nike!

Seattle Sounders Third Shirt

No respected football shirt blog should be without a Seattle Sounders shirt. And only the best have two! I have already spoken about the awesomeness that is the Sounders so head on over to my other Seattle shirt to read more about them.

I believe this was their third kit in 2012 and it’s pretty damn awesome. The colour is described as “super cyan” – they even create their own colours! Just take a minute to appreciate the greatness.

FC Dallas Away Shirt

Second MLS shirt to add to the blog and it’s another lovely shirt in my opinion. This is the 2012-13 away shirt from FC Dallas, who are one of only ten MLS starter clubs having been in the league since its formation in 1996. Until 2005 they were known as Dallas Burn.

They are yet to win the MLS but got close in 2010 before losing in the final of the play-offs to the Colorado Rapids and are currently fifth in the Western Conference which would see them through to the MLS Cup knockout round.

Apart from that I don’t know too much about the club. I have always wanted to visit Texas as it just seems like a crazy place like nowhere else in the World. Unfortunately Dallas has quite a bad name when it comes to sports mainly because of the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL who everybody hates and laughs at.

I’ll give FC Dallas the benefit of the doubt though as this shirt is lovely. The home is the same but has red instead of blue but I preferred this one. It was also picked up in the CFS sale so it was great value for money. Whatever people’s opinions of the MLS are, their clubs have some awesome shirts!

Ajax Home Shirt

Well known for having one of the best academies in World football, there’s a lot to like about Ajax. From being in an awesome city such as Amsterdam to their seemingly always awesome shirts, Ajax are a fantastic club.

They are the most successful club in the Netherlands with  33 Eredivisie titles and 18 KNVB Cups and they were ranked as the seventh most successful European club of the 20th century. They won the Champions League in three consecutive years from 1971-73 and again in 1995. Unfortunately with the ever increasing amounts of money being thrown around by other European leagues, Ajax aren’t the dominant force they once were.

Under Frank de Boer they have won four straight league titles so domestically they are still a big name, normally fighting for the Eredivisie with PSV, Feyenoord and FC Twente.

The amount of quality players that have come through the ranks at Ajax is quite scary. Some of the biggest names to progress through their academy are Johan Cruijff, Edwin van der Sar, Dennis Bergkamp, Patrick Kluivert, Marco van Basten, Rafael van der Vaart, Wesley Sneijder, Maarten Stekelenburg, Eljero Elia and Nigel de Jong. Belgian trio Jan Vertonghen, Toby Alderweireld and Thomas Vermaelen also made their names at Ajax.

I got this shirt in the CFS 20% off sale. I had always wanted an Ajax home shirt. It is a classic design and one I have always liked. This is their 2010-11 home shirt and includes a nice X design at the top of the shirt by the club badge. Another iconic shirt added!

Brondby Away Shirt

Brondby are probably one of, if not the most, recognisable Danish clubs. They have won ten national Danish football championship titles and six national Danish Cups since joining the top league in 1981.

They compete in the ‘New Firm’ derby against FC Copenhagen but have had some tough times recently. They haven’t won the league since 2005 and have had financial troubles which have seen the club close to bankruptcy.

I always remember Brondby for being the club Man United signed Peter Schmeichel from. I also used to play as them on the old Champions League games as they were one of the weaker teams. Unfortunately they’ve not quite reached those heights for some time.

I found this shirt for just £10 in a Sports Direct store. It was a pleasant surprise as Sports Direct unfortunately don’t carry that many cheap, obscure football shirts like the good old days.

This was Brondby’s away shirt in the 2011-12 season (I think) although it’s hard to find much about it. I think they were sponsored by Unicef so I’m no entirely sure why this one doesn’t have a sponsor but maybe they were produced without the sponsor on. Either way, I’m not complaining as it makes the shirt even better in my opinion. It’s a lovely colour (listed as shale whatever the hell that is) and the bright yellow really works with it. A great shirt at a great price!

Red Star Belgrade Home Shirt

Red Star Belgrade are the most successful club in Serbian history with a record of 26 national championships and 24 national cups in both Serbian and ex-Yugoslav competitions. They also won the Champions League in 1991, and became the only Serbian team to ever win it, after seeing off Bayern Munich in the semis before a penalty shoot-out victory over Marseille in the final.

It’s fair to say that their best days are behind them, at least on the European stage. Domestically they are back to their best, winning the Serbian SuperLiga last season for the first time in seven years. They are the best supported club in the country and share the ‘Eternal Derby’ with fellow Belgrade side Partizan.

The shirt itself is very nice indeed and was a bargain buy from UniSportStore. I believe it was on special offer and I managed to pick it up for just €6! A fantastic price for a simple yet stylish shirt, what more could you ask for?

Seattle Sounders Long Sleeve Home Shirt

Seattle Sounders have quickly become one of the biggest teams in American football (no, not that type of football!) in their brief five year existence. They’ve also got a pretty iconic shirt which has gained them fans from around the World.

I don’t personally support an MLS side but always keep an eye out for Sounders results as they currently have Obafemi Martins on their roster (that’s just for my American viewers!) and he is a Birmingham City legend. I also met a Sounders fan at the NFL game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and San Francisco 49ers last year at Wembley. Unfortunately for me as a Jags fan, it was a pretty miserable day. Anyway, on with the shirt…

I have been after a Sounders shirt for a while and I’m very glad to be able to add this one to my collection. This is also the ‘authentic’ version which has the US flag patch heat pressed on the arm and has some nice added details such as the Sounders name inside the lining. To top it off it is also long sleeve which is always an added bonus.

As I mentioned, the Sounders were only added to the MLS as an expansion team in 2009. Since then they’ve become the best supported team in the league and won the Open Cup three years in a row while also losing in the final of the Supporters’ Shield. They are yet to win the MLS but with such a strong support, I’ve no doubt that will come.

They are currently top of the Western Division having won 12 of their 18 games so far. Go Sounders!

Recreativo de Huelva Away Shirt

If the UNAM Pumas shirt wasn’t enough for you, please just take a minute to look at this shirt. It’s quite frankly a work of art and would look more at place in the Louvre than a football stadium.

Thankfully for us, Spanish team Recreativo de Huelva took the plunge and went for the spots. The end product is a wonderful football shirt than any serious collector should own. You would not believe the looks of jealousy you get when wearing this bad boy!

This was Huelva’s away shirt as they finished eighth in the Spanish Segunda Division in the 2012-13 season. It’s no surprise that Hummel were the culprits with this shirt. They like to take chances and it paid off with this iconic shirt.

Their home shirt from the same year was just as good and it’s fair to say Huelva have become one of the most envied teams in World football because no other side can realistically match their excellent kits.

Thankfully the good guys at Classic Football Shirts had this one for a reasonable price and if you’ve got some sense you should go ahead and order it right now!

UNAM Pumas Third Shirt

Probably one of the most iconic club shirts in the World, Mexican side UNAM Pumas never fail to deliver.

Club Universidad Nacional, as they are otherwise known, are one of the most popular clubs in Mexico. They have won seven Primera División championships and four international titles and are well known for their fantastic youth system.

I’m not going to pretend to understand the Liga MX who needs to care about results when their shirts are so brilliant?

The shirt also includes a ‘100 anos’ patch although Wikipedia claims the club were only formed in 1954. However the club do represent the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) so maybe that was opened 100 years ago?

Anyway, sit back, relax and enjoy the pictures. What a shirt!