COMMERCE CITY, Colo. (February 19, 2019) – The Colorado Rapids came out with their new secondary kit for the 2019 MLS season. Marketed as the Black Diamond jersey/kit, this will be the first time in several years the Pids will not feature a yellow secondary kit.
Colorado Rapids Black Diamond Secondary Kit: Just Another White Jersey
So, yeah. It’s a white kit, with some small burgundy on the socks and blue Adidas stripes on the side. And that’s it.
Learn the story behind the 2019 Black Diamond kit.
? https://t.co/hRCnOWTQ1e#Rapids96 #Elevate pic.twitter.com/uV02IroCyI
— Colorado Rapids (@ColoradoRapids) February 19, 2019
In a vacuum, I actually like the skiing/snowboarding inspiration behind this jersey. The initial promo had what appeared to be a cool secondary club crest in the shape of a diamond. But they could have done more with it: Use the logo from the promo as the crest on the jersey. Have fun with the secondary colors that accent the jersey. Do some design to look like moguls, ski lines, a trail map, or something. Any of that would have been dope.
From the mountains to the pitch.
We bring you the Black Diamond kit.#Rapids96 | #Elevate pic.twitter.com/R40wKj2PGf
— Colorado Rapids (@ColoradoRapids) February 19, 2019
Never mind the irony that the “black diamond kit” has no black or diamonds on it.
Everybody else has a white secondary kit too:
If you listened to last week’s episode of Holding The High Line, you heard my opinion on all white kits: If it’s not steeped in tradition, history, or symbolism, you need to add something to it. Otherwise it’s boring and indicative that you couldn’t pick a color or design. Add something to make it fun. There was potential to do that with this kit concept.
But no. It’s a plain white kit. And while the concept behind it might have been well intended and very Colorado, this jersey debuts in a year in which FC Dallas, Chicago Fire, FC Cincinnati, and Minnesota United all came out with white secondary kits.
New England Revolution weren’t that different. Philadelphia Union and New York Red Bulls had relatively tame monotone jersey releases as well. At least Real Salt Lake tried to add a design, even if Mike Petke’s printer was low on red ink. Vancouver Whitecaps did something different and symbolic with the red print. This jersey could have been different. It could have been something more. But no. It’s a plain white kit.
The marketing jargon used to make it seem like effort went into this is something else.
This kit attempted to pay tribute to an iconic and quintessential aspect of life in Colorado. Yet four other clubs came up with the same thing, so either the inspiration for the kit is itself mundane or the vision was executed poorly.
Don’t blame the club:
I get that MLS has an exclusive league-wide deal with Adidas for these kit designs. All these criticisms should probably be pointed at the Adidas design team rather than anyone employed by the league or the aforementioned clubs.
The league makes clubs add a new kit every year to create buzz and grow the brand to ultimately sell merchandise and make money. This is a business after all.
Ultimately it comes down to whether selling these jerseys sell at $85 and beyond. If they’re adding to the profits, they’ll keep things the same. If not, the time, money, and resources spent on these endeavors should be reevaluated. I doubt the suits plan to invite you, me, or Andre Shinyashiki to any of these potential conference calls.
