Columbus Crew and 5 of the Worst Football Kits in Recent Years
When the Columbus Crew unveiled their new kit earlier this week, the Major League Soccer side briefly became the talk of the football world online.
Though not for good reasons.
"The new Columbus Crew kits, it's like I vomited in my mouth a little and it came out in kit form," tweeted Blog Smith.
"Please tell me today is april fools and the columbus crew kits revealed today aren't really what they'll be wearing!!!! HIDEOUS!" added Jamie Hurley.
While it's true that the kit pays homage to the colors on the city's flag, there's a good reason those colors aren't often seen together in sports uniforms. To put it bluntly, it's an ugly combination.
See for yourself at the club's official website (or for a better look, head over to _pat_murphy_'s post on Instagram), and once you've recovered from the shock, join us for this look at five more of the worst kits in recent seasons.
Porto Away, 2015-16
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For the 2015-16 season, Porto released an away kit that leans heavily on various shades of brown.
Is it a tribute to chocolate? Did the designers really like mud? Or was it something else that should only be seen in the lavatory?
And what's with the sky-blue accents? They don't match Porto's royal blue, so why bother?
When the club unveiled the kit on Twitter last summer, the players couldn't mask their disappointment.
SK Brann, 2015
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SK Brann fell to the second division of Norwegian football ahead of the 2015 season after being relegated the previous year. Perhaps that was for the best, because it meant fewer people had to see their garish rubberized kit.
If you were wondering, we're not joking about the rubber part. As noted by the Daily Mirror's Alex Richards upon the kit's release in December 2014, the rubber-latex construction was supposed to protect the players from nature's harsh bite in Norway.
That might be the case, but we come away with the impression that the players were made to look like firemen.
Birmingham City Away, 2015-16
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Birmingham City's home kit for the 2015-16 season is a simple blue and white number with a sash and an overall classy look. The away version is as confounding as it is hideous.
As you can see in the picture that accompanies this slide, Brum's second look includes a shirt that's yellow, red and black. Internationally minded readers will immediately recall the flags of Germany and Belgium.
Which would be fine if Birmingham were in Belgium of Germany. So why that particular combination? Your guess is as good as ours.
Sunderland Away, 2015-16
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When Sunderland released a new away kit ahead of the 2015-16 season, the club's official website almost seemed unable to contain its glee.
"Featuring a tonal green base with impactful solar yellow pop, the kit will make a strong impact on and off the field," the website declared. "Mirroring the design feature on the home shirt, the away shirt incorporates meshing detail on the collar, sleeves and hem, this time in the vibrant solar yellow colour."
It hasn't really worked out that way. Through 13 away matches this season, the Black Cats have won just twice.
Scotland Away, 2014
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Scotland are blessed with one of the coolest crests in international football. A red lion on a yellow background? Yes, please.
But hot-pink and custard-yellow stripes on an otherwise-white kit? No, no, no.
Admittedly, Scotland's 2014 away look had historical precedent, as noted by the country's FA (h/t World Soccer Talk):
"The shirt is a fun, modern interpretation of one of Scotland’s most iconic jerseys and pays homage to the colours of Lord Rosebery.
First worn in the 1880s and continued throughout the next two decades, Scotland played in the primrose hoops which were synonymous as the racing colours of racehorse owner Archibald Philip Primrose, Lord Rosebery, who was an early patron of Scottish football.
The unique colour combination was resurrected as an away strip after World War II and will now be used by Gordon Strachan’s side on the march to France for the European Championship campaign.
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In this case, however, the history should have been left in the past.
