Is pink the new color of football?
From Juventus in 1987 to Barça in the last decade: the trend continues
Sports
October 2nd, 2020
October 2nd, 2020
Colors in football have always been fundamental, not only for a matter of regulations but also and above all for a matter of identity. In addition to symbolizing belonging to a club and a culture, colors are the most visible aesthetic element. Although the palettes are practically infinite, there are certain colors that are less explored than others. Pink, for example, is the basic color of very few teams: Palermo in Italy, Evian in France, Sport Boys in Peru and a few months ago David Beckham's Miami Inter FC.
Among the trends this year there is certainly that of architecture for templates and design, while from a chromatic point of view the reference point is pink. There are many teams that have decided to create a pink kit - available in various psychedelic palettes ranging from hyper pink to barbie pink - or with pink details for the 2020-21 season. In Spain, all adidas Real Madrid kits have references to this color, with the away shirt being completely spring pink; same choice comes from Nike for the third Barça kit, with a fluo version (officially defined as pink beam) combined with aqua green. Pink details also in the Napoli and Arsenal patterns, with decidedly different shades: the Gunners with a very light shade tending to orange, the blues instead with a decidedly brighter pink. From Premier Everton and Sheffield United confirm this chromatic trend, while in the Bundesliga Hoffenheim's third kit will extend the boundaries of a color that is making a comeback.
Color that could have even more aesthetic significance and if it were to end up on the fourth kit of Paris Saint-Germain, the coolest team on the planet. According to leaks and rumors, the double jersey created in collaboration with Jordan Brand and mainly intended for PSG European nights could be Nike's patented hyper pink. The third - which could be released soon - will also be of a purple hue that somehow approaches the world of colors that is depopulating.
Then there are those who use pink for extra-stylistic reasons. October is the month dedicated to the fight against breast cancer and Umbro has decided to create a couple of very interesting projects. Taking advantage of pink - a color universally matched to the fight against this disease - Umbro and the teams involved have decided to launch the pink third shirts, sending a very strong signal. In England, Wayne Rooney's Derby County launched the “Thank You” campaign, while in South America Avai, Chapecoense, Fluminense, Gremio, Santos, Athletico Paranaense and Sport Recife joined the “Pink October” by coloring special kits in pink.
The trend of pink in football is not new. Even if in a numerically less significant way, past attempts to approach a color that only 20 years ago still seemed distant from a cultural point of view are not to be overlooked. Beyond the iconicity of Palermo, in Italy Juventus is the team that has used pink the most: from Cabrini and Scirea in the 1987-88 season to Del Piero and Zidane in the centenary year, passing through Marchisio and Vidal in the 2011-12 season up to Pogba and Dybala in the 2015-16 season. This last shirt has become iconic also thanks to Drake, who posed with the jersey in a shot that raised the odds of the number 32 championship shirt. Another historic case in Serie A was that of Cesena, when in 2015 he dedicated a pink jersey to honor Marco Pantani's career.
In Spain it's Barcelona who hold the record for pink jerseys: in the 10-11, 14-15 and 18-19 seasons, the Catalans partly abandon the Blaugrana colors and dive into different shades of pink. The case of "pink football" that caused the most controversy remains that of Boca Juniors in 2013, with the fans meeting to organize an official protest under the Xeneizes offices. In the Premier League, the last to take the field in pink were Everton and Leicester players, followed in 2018-19 by the Red Devils, who turned into Pink Devils away from home. From Portugal, Benfica and Porto also joined the cause in the 2007-08 and 2014-15 seasons respectively. The most striking pink jersey in history is that of Celtic, which in 2016-17 opens to the pink for the first time in its history.
