Back for its second season in 2014, Major League Soccer’s Jersey Week is happening this week from March 3-6. In the buildup to the start of the new season on March 8, 17 clubs will be unveiling 18 new kits.
Each day of the week, I’ll be evaluating and assigning grades to each new kit. For the official Jersey Week unveiling schedule, head on over to MLSsoccer.com
Today, I’ll be taking a look at the two clubs who launched their new kits early and thus won’t be participating in Jersey Week: D.C. United and the San Jose Earthquakes.
Kit #1: D.C. United Home
The interesting thing about this one is that it was essentially unveiled twice. The original kit was unveiled on February 16th, but a mere eight days later it was re-unveiled with a new sponsor gracing the front of the shirt.
Overall I like how this kit has a really classic feel to it. The design is simple yet striking. Worth noting is the reduction of the amount of red highlighting, which in my opinion is excellent use of addition-by-subtraction theory of minimalism. I know that lots of fans are still waiting for a revival of the horizontal white stripes that were on this shirt from 1996-2007. But until that happens, a shirt like this might just be the next-best thing.
Grade: A-
Kit #2: San Jose Earthquakes Home
San Jose’s new home kit is similar to D.C.’s in that it is a return to a classic look. While D.C. made a greater emphasis on black, San Jose did the opposite in making a jersey reminiscent of the ones they wore in the early 2000’s. It feels as if somebody inverted the colour schemes of both the club logo and the home kit during the offseason. The logo used to be blue and is now black, while the kit used to be black and is now blue. Either way you put it, it looks great.
But above the colour scheme, I cannot express in words my love for the chevron pattern on the front of the shirt. It looks strange on the logo, but on a scale of one to 10 I give it an 11 on the jersey.
If only the Earthquakes had a sponsor. If they did, this kit would be perfect.
Grade: A
Kit #3: San Jose Earthquakes Away
At first glance, one would be fair to think this is Bayern Munich’s new home kit. Whether the Earthquakes took a page out of the German powerhouse’s design manual is unknown. But what is known is that the chevron patter looks just as good in red as it does in blue.
The red is supposed to be a throwback to the original San Jose Earthquakes of the old NASL. As great as the shirt looks, it could be a little more accurate in representing the old club’s uniform. Also, that whole lack of a sponsor thing is still a knock against the shirt. And the white accents don’t work to the same effect as the black sleeves on the home shirt in helping the kit “pop”.
But still, this is a really nice kit. Great start to a new era of soccer uniforms in San Jose.
Grade: A-
Overall, the early releases were very impressive. It will be difficult for today’s new unveilings to be as good. Five kits are on deck. Stay tuned…
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on Twitter – @MichaelNorton95. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport – and “liking” our Facebook page.
Interested in writing for LWOS? We are looking for enthusiastic, talented writers to join our Footy writing team. Visit our “Write for Us” page for very easy details in how you can get started today!
Feel free to discuss this and other footy related articles with thousands of fans at r/football.
