The new Manchester United jacket dedicated to George Best
The latest masterpiece from adidas Originals
September 27th, 2024
"Belfast born. Manchester made" is the title of the new collection by adidas Originals and Manchester United dedicated to George Best, winner of the Ballon d'Or and the European Cup with the Red Devils in 1968. On the jacket, instead of the classic club crest, the city crest appears, one of the most notable details: it is not common to see a football club put aside its own crest in favor of a different one. The number 7 of the forward, one of the most iconic players to have played on the red side of Manchester, is also added to the crest, and his name is embroidered on the wrist area. Manchester United, thanks mainly to a history that would be reductive to define as glorious, has always relied on the legacy left by its players. George Best, even before the debut of Eric Cantona, Roy Keane, David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo, was the first footballer to become a protagonist of pop culture in Manchester.
The inspiration behind the collection by adidas Originals and Manchester United is much more. The 1967/68 season is the tenth anniversary of the 1958 Munich air disaster, in which eight first-team players and three members of the club's staff lost their lives, just hours after the team coached by Matt Busby had qualified for the semi-finals of the European Cup. Incredibly, seven years later, Manchester United were once again champions of England. In 1967, the club repeated that feat, reaching the European Cup final for the first time. It was an extraordinary rebirth, led mainly by Busby and his assistant Jimmy Murphy, who relied on the explosive talent of Irishman George Best.