The 90s were a period of great change for football – and they were also a time during which teams got changed into some of the finest kits the game has ever seen.
From enduring classics to more left-field cult favourites, the 90s were an exhibition of sartorial excellence on the football pitch.
Here, we run through the top 32 strips from the final decade of the 20th century.
32. Fulham away 1999/2000
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Playing in white and black doesn’t really give Fulham all that much room to jazz things up with their home kits – but for their away strips, they’ve got a blank canvas.
And they took full advantage of that with their road effort for the 1999/2000 season, dropping this simple yet dazzling bright green number by Adidas.
31. Croatia home 1996-1998
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By now, we know what to expect from Croatia’s home kit – but back in the 90s, when the Balkan nation had only just gained independence from Yugoslavia, the iconic red and white shirt was something of a novelty.
It made its major tournament debut at Euro 96, Croatia’s first major finals – where they reached the quarter-finals.
30. Manchester United away 1993/94
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These days, black away kits are so ubiquitous that they don’t tend to stand out – but Manchester United donned this stylish effort when they were more… avant-garde.
And United wore it on the road during a highly successful season under Alex Ferguson: they retained their Premier League title, and made it a double by also winning the FA Cup.
29. Real Madrid home 1995/96
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Of course, when you think of Real Madrid, you think of one colour – white – but a purple has had an important presence on the European giants’ kits over the years.
Their collared 1995/96 home strip struck the perfect balance between the two tones, with Kelme’s ‘paw print’ logo along the sleeves giving it a surprisingly stylish additional edge.
28. Southampton home 1993-1995
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In English slang, ‘pony’ means rather the opposite of good – but Southampton’s first Premier League kit by the Pony brand certainly didn’t warrant such a crude description.
Chevrons AND stripes is a bold combination that’s rarely seen – because it has no right to look this good – but it paid off for the Saints, who rocked this beauty at home for two years.
27. Kansas City Wizards
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Back in the early days of MLS, clubs didn’t have kit sponsors like they do now; instead, the front of the shirt simply bore the team’s name.
That left plenty of room for striking designs, and the Kansas City Wizards took full advantage in 1996 – wearing this brightly striped white home strip and a black away equivalent.
26. Marseille 1992/93
Be warned: you’re going to see this Adidas template a few times on the list – but it’s just so darn good! And Marseille absolutely looked the part in it during their Champions League-winning campaign of 1992/93.
The Ligue 1 giants famously beat AC Milan at Munich Olympiastadion wearing this kit, becoming the first French side to be crowned champions of Europe.
25. Tunisia home 1998
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Tunisia went out in the group stage of the 1998 World Cup, scoring only gone goal and picking up a solitary point – but they looked great while doing so.
The African nation wore this strip in their tournament opener against England, and its similarly snazzy white equivalent in their subsequent clashes with Colombia and Romania.
24. Chelsea away 1993/94
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It’s unusual to see any red on a Chelsea kit these days (apart from the tiny details in the club’s badge), but it was a regular in the Blues’ pallet back in the day – and it had a striking presence on their 1993/94 away strip.
The slick stripes; the contrasting blue collar; the completely impractical yet brilliant lace-up fastening… It’s a fine effort all around, this one.
23. Borussia Dortmund home 1996/97
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Borussia Dortmund are synonymous with black and yellow, and the German giants really stood out in their neon home kits of the mid- to late 90s.
BVB enjoyed their finest hour – winning the 1996/97 Champions League – in a slightly different variation, but this was their primary home strip for that season – and it remains a true classic.
22. Liverpool home 1991-1993
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Oh look, it’s that Adidas template again! And it formed the basis of Liverpool’s first kits of the Premier League era – looking especially appealing in their traditional home colours.
Heavily branded it may be, but the German manufacturer’s iconic white stripes really jazzed up what could have been a fairly forgettable red strip otherwise.
21. Republic of Ireland home 1990
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Italia ’90 was the Republic of Ireland’s first World Cup – and the Boys in Green impressed by reaching the quarter-finals, drawing with England and the Netherlands along the way.
And Jack Charlton’s side made for quite a sight in this subtly patterned Adidas home shirt, topped off with a seriously neat orange and white trim.
20. France home 1998
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France’s fans won’t have cared too much about what their side wore while winning the World Cup for the very first time – but Les Bleus’ victory on home soil was all the better for their classic kit.
The red and white stripe across the front look great – but Adidas also managed to get the colours of the French tricolore into the three stripes down the sleeve. Oof!
19. Barcelona home 1995-1997
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Europe’s elite don’t tend to have their kits manufactured by Kappa these days, but the Barcelona sides of the early to mid-90s stepped it out in some of the best designs ever conjured up by the Italian brand.
Barca’s 1995-1997 home strip was was the pick of the bunch, worn by 90s icons such as Ronaldo, Hristo Stoichkov and Gheorghe Hagi – all 1996/97 Copa del Rey and Cup Winners’ Cup champions under Bobby Robson.
18. Bayern Munich home 1991-1993
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Yep, another one of these! But Bayern Munich’s home kit between 1991 and 1993 was quite breathtaking – helped in no small part by the Adidas stripes loosely resembling the pattern of the Bavarian flag featured in the club’s badge.
It was just a shame for the German giants that they didn’t lift a single trophy during that period, enduring an uncharacteristically barren spell.
17. Manchester City away 1993/94
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The Manchester City of the 90s were a world away from the Europe-dominating machine we know today – but the end of the 20th century brought some of the greatest kits in their history.
And a potentially questionable combination of purple, white and yellow came together to make City’s 1993/94 away strip one of the best ever to grace the Premier League.
16. Ipswich Town home 1992-1994
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A number of Premier League clubs had versions of this lace-up Umbro shirt template at the beginning of the Premier League era, but none of them looked as clean as Ipswich Town’s 1992-1994 home design.
The East Anglian club’s classic outfit – which was worn by, among others, Town legend John Wark – almost looks like something out of the Wild West – in the best possible way.
15. Parma home 1998/99
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Parma have fallen on hard times since the turn of the century – they went bankrupt in 2004, then again in 2015 – but the Italian club were a cult favourite in 90s, winning the UEFA Cup twice.
And this home kit is a cult classic, worn by the likes of Lilian Thuram and Hernan Crespo during the season in which the Gialloblu achieved the second of those European triumphs – and lifted the Coppa Italia.
14. Coventry City away 1996/97
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Did Coventry City take inspiration from Croatia for their 1996/97 away shirts? Maybe – but whether they did or not, the Sky Blues looked resplendent in red and navy blue.
It was even worn by another team once: Chelsea, who turned up for a Premier League clash at Coventry’s old Highfield Road ground without their own change kit, so had to borrow the hosts’ –whoops!
13. Cerezo Osaka 1998
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From the Premier League to the Japanese J.League now, and Cerezo Osaka – whose 1998 home kit made their players look rather like life-sized packets of Parma Violets sweets.
Which is a wonderful thing as far as we’re concerned! This is an utter beaut of a strip – whose pink colour is a nod to Japan’s famous cherry blossom trees from which the club take their name (‘cerezo’ means ‘cherry blossom’ in Spanish).
12. Japan goalkeeper 1998
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Anything one of the country’s top-flight clubs can do, the Japanese national team can do better – it would seem! Get a load of their goalkeeper’s kit from the 1998 World Cup.
Like one of those shirts all the coolest 90s kids had at the school disco (only better), Yoshi Kawaguchi (above) was the shot-stopper privileged enough to wear this fire outfit in France.
11. Sampdoria home 1990-1992
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The early 90s were the most successful period in Sampdoria’s history: they won the 1989/90 Cup Winners’ Cup, claimed their first ever Scudetto in 1990/91, and finished as runners-up in the 1991/92 European Cup.
It was fitting, then, that La Samp’s finest hour coincided with their finest kit – featuring a shirt which is a masterclass in sponsor positioning, and with the club crest unusually appearing on the left sleeve.
10. Luton home 1990-1992
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Until their promotion to the Premier League in 2023, this was Luton’s last home shirt as a top-flight club – so you could say that the Hatters were relegated in style in 1992, in a way.
Stripes AND a diamond-esque pattern on the same design? And a collar?! It just shouldn’t work – but our goodness, it did here, in the Bedfordshire club’s famous orange.
9. Newcastle home 1993-1995
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Newcastle Brown Ale is one of the most iconic sponsors in Premier League history – but their deal with Newcastle United arguably peaked between the years of 1993 and 1995.
Later on, the Magpies shirts would feature a logo resembling the label on bottles of ‘Newcy Brown’ – but the comparatively simple giant blue star looked simply stunning, enhancing a gorgeous strip.
8. Denmark goalkeeper 1992
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Denmark pulled off one of the greatest shocks in football history by winning the 1992 European Championship having not initially even qualified for the tournament.
Legendary goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel (above) was key to the Danes’ unlikely success, and the opposition certainly would have been able to see him in this beautifully bright rainbow kit.
7. USA away 1994
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In 1994, the USA caught soccer fever as the country staged its first World Cup – and the hosts embraced the occasion by looking, well, completely and utterly American in this away kit – quite clearly an homage to the American flag.
The States were knocked out of their home tournament in the last 16 by eventual winners Brazil, but no other nation could rival Alexi Lalas and co. for style.
6. Mexico home 1997-1998
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Have you ever heard of ABA Sport? Probably not – it’s a little-known Mexican manufacturer – but you’ve probably seen this work of art they made for the Mexico national team in the late 90s.
It got shown off to a global audience at the 1998 World Cup in France – as did its white away counterpart – where Mexico made it through to the last 16.
5. Arsenal away 1991-1993
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The greatest away kit in Premier League history? Arsenal’s absolutely classic ‘bruised banana’ Adidas number might just be, you know.
Donned by George Graham’s Gunners on the road during the last season of the old First Division and the inaugural Premier League campaign, the yellow and navy strip was such a hit that it got a modern re-imagining by Adidas for the 2019/20 season.
4. West Germany home 1990
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Few teams have ever looked as stylish in winning the World Cup as West Germany at Italia ’90 – when they were crowned world champions for the third time while rocking this sensational Adidas (who else?) strip.
Featuring a slick stylised version of the German flag across the chest, this shirt – popularised by stars like Jurgen Klinsmann (above) and captain Lothar Matthaus – remains a classic to this day
3. Fiorentina home 1998/99
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Spearheaded by the prolific Gabriel Batistuta, the Fiorentina team of the late 90s go down as one the great Serie A cult sides – and their 1998/99 kit certainly helped.
Emblazoned with one of the most iconic shirt sponsors of all time, Japanese video game legends Nintendo, this FILA strip was part of a trio of La Viola classics that season – including a seriously cool red third version which was worn for just a single game.
2. AC Milan home 1992/93
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Red and black will always be synonymous with AC Milan, but some of the Rossoneri’s home kits throughout their glittering history have been considerably better than others.
And this Adidas effort from the 1992/93 season might just be the pick of the bunch. Those beautifully clean stripes; the old-school Trefoil logo; the Scudetto badge symbolising their status as reigning champions of Italy; the gold star denoting 10 Serie A titles; the sponsor (Motta produce coffee-making accessories, for that it’s worth)… Just wow.
1. England third 1990-1991
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Ask any group England fans what their favourite Three Lions shirt of all time is and chances are a big number of them will say this one, the nation’s third shirt from the very beginning of the 90s.
Stunning though it evidently is, it’s hard to deny that a fair amount of its allure comes from the fact it was worn by England a grand total of… one time – in a 1-0 Euro 92 qualifying win away to Turkey, where Dennis Wise earned the distinction of being the only Three Lions player to score in the now sought-after kit.
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