Over the years, the world of football has witnessed quite an abundance of the worst football club kits.
Amongst them, some have been commendable, while others have been less desirable.
Several of these kits have faded into obscurity, but a few have left such an indelible mark on our consciousness that they are destined to be remembered forever.
When it comes to design choices, football enthusiasts have been exposed to a plethora of options.
It must be noted, however, that some of these wears have been rather disappointing throughout the past three decades.
Bearing this in mind, futballnews presents to you a selection of ten very worst football kits to have appeared in the arenas of club football including the national team, from 1992 to date.
Aston Villa 2023-2024;
Aston Villa’s kit for the 2023-2024 season was a significant disappointment for the renowned English club.
Instead of providing the desired light and breathable feel essential for optimal performance, the jerseys proved to be a major disaster.
The shirts clung to the players’ bodies, leading to the appearance of being drenched during matches.
This was particularly noticeable when Aston Villa faced Legia Warsaw in Europa League action, where the Castore-made jerseys seemed visibly soaked.
Wolverhampton Wanderers: away, 2020-21
On another note, Wolverhampton Wanderers’ away kit for the 2020-21 season had the potential to be a universally appealing white shirt.
However, it was unfortunately marred by a large, irregular turquoise stain that covered the front panel, giving the impression of two distinct and randomly stitched designs combined in an ugly manner.
Liverpool: 2013-14;
The Red’s jersey was widely regarded as the most repulsive piece of football outfit ever seen in the Premier League era, and quite possibly in history overall.
The shirt was obnoxiously loud, divided into three sections with a plain black upper portion sitting above two lower sections of jagged white and purple spikes.
The upper sleeves featured large asymmetrical patches of purple and white, and even the socks were intentionally mismatched, with the left leg having a black block and the right leg sporting a purple block.
Manchester United 1996-1997;
Manchester United‘s 1996-1997 season saw them suffer a defeat against Southampton, and surprisingly, their manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, blamed it on their grey kit.
He argued that the color of the shirt blended with the crowd, making it difficult for his players to spot each other and make accurate passes.
Despite changing their shirts at half-time, they still ended up losing the game 6-3.
Fiorentina 1992-1993;
In a different instance, Fiorentina faced controversy during the 1992-1993 season when their away strip featured a design that resembled a swastika on the shoulders and arms.
Although the pattern was simply a hidden design, it sparked unfounded rumors that the club had intentionally included the Nazi symbol due to their historical connections to fascist allegiances during World War II.
Despite this controversy, the kit garnered attention for its retro and cool appearance, especially with the 7-Up sponsorship.
Huddersfield 2019-20;
The Huddersfield 2019-20 season brought about a failed publicity stunt for The Terriers, resulting in a misconduct fine.
The incident occurred during a pre-season friendly against Rochdale, where the team came out wearing jerseys adorned with a massive Paddy Power sponsorship banner.
Looking like contestants in a beauty pageant rather than a football team, this action went against the FA’s sponsorship regulations, which state that only one area on the front of the shirt should not exceed 250 square centimetres.
Following the violation, the FA banned the shirts, leaving uncertainty as to whether this would have continued throughout the season or if it was simply intended as a one-time joke for that particular game.
Barcelona 2015-2016;
Tradition holds a significant place in history, and Barcelona fans have always cherished the sight of their iconic players, including Diego Maradona, Johan Cruyff, and Lionel Messi, donning the renowned vertical red and blue stripes.
However, the 2015-2016 season brought about a dramatic change that caused an uproar among the fans when the beloved stripes were altered to a horizontal pattern.
To gauge the sentiment of the devoted supporters, a poll conducted by a Spanish newspaper revealed that a staggering 78 percent of Barcelona fans despised this new shirt design.
Fortunately, this experimental deviation from tradition lasted a mere season, as Barcelona heeded the passionate outcry and swiftly returned to their beloved vertical stripes for subsequent seasons.
Nottingham Forest 1995-1997;
During the years 1995 to 1997, Nottingham Forest sported an infamous away kit created by Umbro, which unfortunately tarnished the reputation of the world’s wealthiest league.
The initial sight of the kit was the sickly yellow color, followed by massive grids of deformed graffiti, consisting of disjointed fragments from both the old coat of arms and the contemporary tree emblem of the club.
The addition of a pin-striped collar further contributed to the disharmony of the already chaotic designed outfit.
Cardiff City 2012-2013;
Cardiff City’s 2012-2013 season was marked by a significant change brought about by the club’s controversial former Malaysian chairman, Vincent Tan.
Initially known as the Bluebirds due to their traditional blue kit, Tan insisted that the team switch to red.
This decision, however, caused quite a stir among fans and the football community.
Tan justified his decision by explaining that red was considered a lucky color in Malay culture.
He also claimed that this change was part of a major and significant investment into the club.
In line with the rebranding, a red dragon was incorporated into the club’s badge, symbolizing their new identity.
Remarkably, this peculiar era continued until 2015 when fan pressure reached a tipping point, leading Tan to relent and agree to revert to their beloved blue kit and badge.
The switch back to blue was immediate, and the redesigned badge prominently featured a bluebird, representing the return to the team’s original identity.
Cameroon 2002 & 2004;
Cameroon’s experimental shirt designs made an appearance in both 2002 and 2004. In the 2002 Africa Cup of Nations, they made headlines by going sleeveless.
However, FIFA imposed a new rule before the World Cup that required football shorts to have sleeves.
With this setback, Cameroon emerged victorious in the tournament.
In 2004, during the African Nations Cup, Cameroon once again caused a stir with their attire.
This time, they wore a unique onesie provided by Puma during the knockout stages.
Unfortunately, their fashion choice came with consequences. Fecafoot, the country’s football federation, was fined £125,000 and they also had six qualifying points deducted from their World Cup group.
