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Many football clubs and national sides have worn red — but do you know the story behind each one?
Here's the history of every red shirt in our catalogue:
1892 REDS: Liverpool began their existence wearing blue and white — similar to local rivals Everton. It wasn't until 1959 that they switched to an all-red kit. It was Bill Shankly who proposed going completely red to cut a more intimidating figure. According to the manager, the colour symbolised danger and power. On 16th December 1964, they wore it for the first time in a European Cup tie against Anderlecht.
1958 JOHN CHARLES: Legend has it that, in ancient times, two dragons lived in Wales and waged war against each other — one red, one white. The red of the Welsh shirt is tied to the fire breathed by the red dragon, which triumphed over the white and became the symbol of Wales through Uther Pendragon, the father of the legendary King Arthur.
1966 ENGLAND CHAMPION: In the full swing of Swinging London and Beatlemania, the country that invented the game hosted the 1966 World Cup. The tournament was far removed from the peace-and-love spirit of the age, which gave the red shirt in which England lifted their only international trophy a different kind of meaning — and legendary status.
1968 RED DEVILS: In their early days, the club — then known as "the Heathens" — wore green and gold, the colours of the company behind them. But after a severe financial crisis, new owners decided the club needed a complete overhaul. It was during this period that the team changed its name: on 24th April 1902, Manchester United was officially born, with red and white as its colours.
1974 ATLÉTICO DE MADRID GLASGOW: The Battle of Glasgow was a historic match between Celtic and Atlético de Madrid in the semi-final of the 1974 European Cup. Celtic in their classic green-and-white hoops; Atlético in an away kit of solid red that has since become a fan favourite again. The match at Celtic Park in Scotland was one of the most controversial and thrilling in rojiblanco history — the first step on the road to the 1974 European Cup Final.
1975 CCCP Home: Even before the Soviet state was formed, the Red Guard and later the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army adopted red as their colour in the struggle against the monarchist White Army. From that point on, and throughout the existence of the Soviet Union, red was used as the primary colour for the various sporting sections it represented.
1977 CUBA: The combination of red and white, symbolising love and blood, is used by Cubans to express their devotion to Santa Bárbara and Shangó. Despite a rich sporting tradition in baseball and boxing, football hasn't achieved the same success in Cuba. Even so, Cuba holds the distinction of being the first Caribbean nation to reach the final stage of a World Cup, qualifying for France 1938 and going on to reach the quarter-finals.
1979 NOTTINGHAM FOREST: The club was founded in 1865 at a meeting in the Clinton Arms on Shakespeare Street, where it was agreed that the colour of the new club would be red. In fact, Forest were the FIRST team in history to wear red. They also remain the only club in the world to have won more European Cups than their own league title.
1986 SPAIN: We need to go back to the 1920 Olympics in Antwerp to find Spain wearing red for the first time. The decision was taken by the president of the Spanish Olympic Committee at the time, Gonzalo de Figueroa y Torres. From that point on — save for a brief change shortly after those games and in the aftermath of the Civil War — Spain has worn "la Roja" ever since.
As you can see, red appears across many of the most iconic kits in football history. Even Stephen Hawking, the celebrated British theoretical physicist, saw red as a key factor in football success — citing a German study that suggested teams wearing red are more confident and more aggressive, and therefore more likely to win.
