Barcelona have unveiled their new home kit for the 2024-25 season and they haven't done things by halves. Oh wait… actually they have.
Instead of their relatives blaugrana Stripes, the Catalan club has decided to go for an inherited design based on the first shirts the team wore 125 years ago.
Barça will celebrate this special anniversary by wearing a kit inspired by the original shirts worn from the club's founding in 1899 until 1910.
Although there are several different explanations, Barcelona historians believe that the most likely origin of the club's colours is the Merchant Taylor School in Merseyside, England. That was the school attended by Arthur Witty, who was one of the founding members of FC Barcelona and became president of the club in 1903.
The main competing theory is that the colours were chosen by Witty's teammate and club founder Joan Gamper, who borrowed the colours from his beloved FC Basel.
The 125th anniversary revamp sees the return of the half-and-half shirts for the first time since 2008-09, when a budding young coach named Pep Guardiola guided a star-studded team to the first treble of LaLiga, Copa del Rey and Champions League in Spanish football history.
Several of those icons feature in the impressive 2024-25 home kit launch video, with cameos from Andrés Iniesta and Carles Puyol, although none play as prominent a role as fan favourite Ronaldinho.
There was also a version used for the club's centenary season in 1999-2000, when Louis van Gaal coached a star-studded team that included Guardiola, Luis Enrique and Rivaldo.
There are also appearances from a host of contemporary stars including Aitana Bonmati, Robert Lewandowski, Pedri and the man (boy?) of the moment Lamine Yamal.
The kit is a clear triumph, an elegant nod to the club's history that will pair well with the shirt of any other team they face next season.
