"Marbled in burgundy and shades of blue, Bayern's svelte pre-game shirt is actually much nicer than several of their proper matchday kits this season and could easily slide straight into the line-up as a result. Wunderbar. Rating: 8.5/10 Perhaps best described as a "riot of color," Arsenal's lively pre-match garb is inspired by London's Notting Hill Carnival and, as such, features vibrant plumage in red, blue and yellow. It's unashamedly loud and lairy, and we really quite like it. Rating: 8/10"
"Lovely stuff from Barça here, who have used their three club colors to create a splendid soundwave design which ripples across the pre-match shirt. The simplicity and uniformity of the tonal logos and crests caps things off nicely, though we're not sure about pairing the jersey up with those obnoxiously green shorts. Rating: 9/10"
"With club identity, design language and any semblance of league-mandated decorum out of the window, designers usually tend to let their creativity run amok when it comes to the jerseys worn by players before kick-off, either while limbering up or going through the pre-game formalities."
Warm-up and pre-match jerseys for the 2025-26 European season abandon traditional club identity and league decorum, allowing designers to experiment freely. Many top clubs have released bold, unconventional pre-game shirts featuring loud prints, tonal crests, and unusual color pairings. Barcelona’s top uses club colors in a soundwave pattern with tonal logos, while Bayern’s marbled burgundy-and-blue design is sleek enough for matchday use. Arsenal’s vibrant Notting Hill Carnival–inspired top features red, blue and yellow plumage and a loud, lairy aesthetic. The range spans excellent, interesting, and outright ugly designs, with ratings assigned to several examples.
Read at ESPN.com
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