Football is arguably the most renowned sport in the whole world. Many sports are popular and loved but no one can match football. Be it big cities, towns, or even villages football is played, discussed, and loved in every part of a country. In respect of the level of competition, decorated football is played in Europe. Except few international breaks, there is always a football club match whether it’s a weekday or weekend.
Football also follows their favorite players and clubs passionately, most of the fans watch the game live in the stadium. However, some who can’t watch live, watch via live telecast, while some watch analytics, and podcasts and discuss among them. There is one thing that keeps all fans connected to their favorite players and it is football jerseys.
Fans started buying their favorite club’s jersey before the season began. Wearing jerseys isn’t just another cloth to them. All fans are deeply attached to the logo, color, design, and fabric of their favorite jersey. Several clubs sell multiple million jerseys every year, which we will discuss later in the article.
The love for jerseys among fans was recently seen when Argentina won the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The sponsor and manufacturer of Argentina’s national team jersey Adidas had gone out of stock for Lionel Messi’s jersey. The managing director of Adidas said, “ We had expected the demand for jerseys would increase if Argentina won the World Cup, but we haven’t imagined such a level of demand.”
Ranking of best football jerseys of all time
Football jerseys were invented by American native designer, Krit Cranson” which is why it’s also called kit. Since the beginning, jerseys have been one of the strongest sources of money for every club. Sponsors pay a lot of money for showing their name and logo on the football jersey.
The fans made it popular and eventually best to a football jersey. The love for their favorite club and players is the only deciding factor for the best football jersey, So, without a do here is the ranking of the best football jerseys of all time.
10. Chelsea – Premier League (Season 2021 home kit)
Chelsea is one of the most dominating English clubs who play in the Premier League. The club had a long and great history in European football. The club created a record by winning season 2020-21 Premier League trophy by beating Manchester City. Under the ownership of Roman Abramovich The Blues won much silverware. But, things changed for the club when a Russian oligarch sold the club after an unfortunate long battle between Russia and Ukraine.
The club’s home kit was plain blue without any designs or color mixtures in the 2020-21 season. The simple design and the typical Chelsea Blue color looked stunning with the addition of the sponsors’ logo.
As of now, football jerseys of Chelsea are among the highest-grossing in 2023. Chelsea sells approximately 1,525,000 jerseys per year worldwide. Trivago is the new training jersey partner of Chelsea. The club had its first sponsor logo of Gulf Air back in 1983. Later on, The Blues signed many sponsorship deals but Samsung was one of the highest-paying sponsors of Chelsea with a giant deal of 18 million euros.
9. Borussia Dortmund – Bundesliga (Season 2020-21 jersey)
Borussia Dortmund is one of the major clubs in the Bundesliga along with Bayern Munich. Dortmund are mine of football talent and its Youth Academy keep producing some world-class football player. But, it’s quite unfortunate for Dortmund that these promising talents get huge offers from European clubs. So, the club never gets benefited from their talent mine in the long run.
In the whole Bundesliga, the Borussia Dortmund jersey is considered one of the best. In 1974, Dortmund started jersey sponsorship for the first time with the City of Dortmund. After two seasons, the club has signed a new sponsorship deal with “Samson” for another two years.
Borussia emerges as one of the most jersey-selling clubs. In season 2022-23, the club sold more than 1.5 million jerseys. It clearly shows that the club making one of the major income via jersey selling. In last season, Borussia changed its home jersey. The new jersey has the Puma logo on the right side of the chest, and the sleeves are half-black stripes which makes the jersey very eye-catching and liked.
8. Manchester City – Premier League (Season 2020-21 home kit)
The Treble winner is also winning when it comes to jersey selling. Manchester City is one of the most liked and followed clubs in the Premier League. In season 2020, Man City sold more than 1,085,000 jerseys and made millions of dollars. Like any club, jersey selling is one of the major sources of passive income for City as well.
The Premier League winner, Man City has some of the big sponsors like Etihad Airways, Nissan, and Etisalat. The club released an official statement that states, they made a fortune of $336 million last season from jersey sponsorship deals. The color, logo, and design of the City jersey are most attractive. The home jersey is sky blue with white logos on it while the away jersey is off-white colors and shimmering details on team badges and sponsor logos.
Along with branding and earning through sponsorship deals Manchester City also promote important environmental issue. The away jersey of the club is targeted at the global water crisis. In 2022, Man City sold more than 1.2 million jerseys and generated millions of money.
7. Bayern Munich – Bundesliga (Season 2021-22 home kit)
Bayern Munich is the most dominating and recognized club in the German Bundesliga. The club also holds the record for most League wins. It has featured some of the most accomplished footballers by their side such as Thomas Muller and Robert Lewandowski.
The Germain giant launched their new stunning jersey in 2020-21. The regular red color was changed into dark red in the shape of pointed strips pointing downwards. According to several reports, Bayern Munich sold more than 2,575,000 jerseys last season and generated millions of fortune.
The German club sponsored its jersey for the first back in 1965 in collaboration with the German sportswear brand Adidas. Later on, the club made many huge sponsorship deals with different brands such as Allianz and Deutsche.
6. Juventus FC – Serie A (Season 2018-19 home kit)
Juventus is among the most established and strong teams in Serie A. The club has a long history in European football. In 1981, the Italian club started sponsoring its jersey for the first time, and the prime manufacturing company of the time Ariston became their first sponsor partner. The club has several giant jersey sponsors such as Adidas, Nike, and Jeep.
Juventus shocked the whole world when in 2018 they signed one of the most great and popular footballers of all time, Cristiano Ronaldo. The signing of a Real Madrid legend gives a huge boost in jersey selling for the club. The club generated more than 60% of the amount they paid for Ronaldo just by selling jerseys, which is also a record in the football world. The club has sold 1,615,000 jerseys worldwide which makes it the world’s biggest jersey seller.
The jersey of the club had 3 black stripes on the front. In between all black strips, there was one white strip and the remaining part of the jersey was fully white. The away kit was a bit different and it had an orange-purple blend on the three stripes on the shoulders.
5. Arsenal – Premier League (Season 2021-22 home jersey)
Arsenal is a club of fans which sets it apart from the rest of the premier league clubs. The club had a great history in European football but, the past several years for the club were much good and the club didn’t achieve any major title. The great thing is in season 2022-23, the club is performing well in the Premier League and other tournaments as well. The fans of Arsenal are much happier for the rise of their club.
The jersey color of Arsenal of same classic and traditional i.e., red and white. But you can’t ignore or overlook the traditional color of the jersey, on the contrary, it’s more popular in modern times. After Arsenal, many clubs are following in their footsteps and getting back to their old or retro jersey. Also, fans love the actions of clubs, and eventually, the selling of jerseys has increased.
The front side of this jersey is red, and the back side of the jersey is white There are also shoulder strips in black color. The sponsor’s logo at the front is white, while the logo of the club at the sleeves is black. On average, Arsenal sold more than 600,000 jerseys per year.
4. Liverpool – Premier League (Season 2020-21 jersey)
Liverpool is one of most oldest and most successful English clubs and is carrying a very rich history with itself. It was the first club in the history of football that did jersey sponsorship. Hitachi was the first sponsor of the Liverpool in 1979. The club is also known with nickname as “The Reds” and the anthem of the club is “You’ll Never Walk Alone”.
Later on, the club made sponsorship with many renowned brands like Carlsberg, Crown Paints, Candy, and Standard Chartered. The reach of the club in the whole of Europe and worldwide is so much that the club can generate much more money than currently what they are making. However, the club still makes a significant amount of money from jersey selling. The Reds jersey is available at the club’s official website and various e-commerce websites.
In 2022, Liverpool made multiple million by selling 1670,000 jerseys. In 2021, the club transformed its home kit into an old traditional color and design with the addition of lurid orange to the crimson. And the away jersey remains the same as the classic.
3. FC Barcelona – La Liga (Season 2020-21 jersey)
Barcelona is one of the most dominating clubs in La Liga along with Real Madrid. In the Spanish League, Barca has the most beautiful jersey. When it came to sponsor deal on jersey the club were different from than rest. Until 2006, FC Barcelona didn’t make any jersey sponsorship deals. The football legend Lionel Messi played a major role in the popularity and reach of the club in different parts of the world.
Barcelona made its first jersey sponsor deal with UNICEF of worth $1.5 million. After the first deal, the club jumped into full-fledged jersey sponsorship deals. Some of the major sponsors of the Baraca are Qatar Airways, Nike, and Rakuten.
In season 2022-23, the club sold 2 million jerseys and generated massive money which is helping the club in such a vulnerable state. The home kit contains a red signature and blue stripes, and the front of the jersey has the Rakuten sponsorship logo. While, the away kit has a light purple and a fusion of blues and reds, showing the fight against gender discrimination in football.
2. Real Madrid – La Liga (Season 2022-23 home kit)
Real Madrid is one of the greatest clubs in the Spanish League. The club is known for producing legendary football players. Madrid is among the most successful and followed clubs in the entire world. The club has a record for winning a maximum number of UEFA Champions League trophies. In recent years, Portuguese legend Cristiano Ronaldo and manager Zinedine Zidane played a vital role in the club’s success in various tournaments.
The rivalry between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona is the most popular thing in the Spanish League. Both clubs fight in match titles as El Classico. When it comes to jersey sponsorship, the club started its first deal with Paramalat in 1985. Real Madrid always works with multiple jersey sponsors and some of their prime sponsors are Adidas, Mahou, and Emirates Airlines. The club receives a giant amount of 84.1 million annually from Emirates Airlines.
In 2022, Real Madrid sold 3 million jerseys and earned a massive amount, which put the club at 2nd rank among the best football jerseys of all time. Madrid has one of the most simple yet most beautiful jerseys. The jersey is white with bluish strips on the shoulders. The sponsors’ logos are in black, while the Club’s logo has a regal appearance to it.
1. Manchester United – Premier League (Season 2022-23 home kit)
Manchester United top the list of the top 10 best football jersey of all time. The club is most prime member in the Premier League and is known for its game spirit. United is the top club in jersey sponsorships. The Red Devils receive a massive amount of $290 million from jersey sponsors. Some of the major sponsors are Vodafone, AIG, and Chevrolet.
The home kit of the club is in red with the sponsor’s logo in white on the right chest of the jersey. The collar of the jersey is quite attractive with red triangles printed on white background and multiple black strips made on the shoulders. The club’s logo is enclosed in a white-bordered square.
Apart from jersey sponsorships, United also made a great fortune from jersey selling. In 2022, the club sold 3,250,000 jerseys worldwide which added a great some in club’s revenue. The boom in the club’s income started with the joining of one of the greatest managers of all time Sir Alex Ferguson.
