It’s been quite the summer of embarrassments for Barcelona. One of the greatest clubs in the sport are neck-deep in an ocean of debt, all while reeling from losing their best ever player – having been marred by mistakes at an administrative level that saw them buy and sell a new signing in the same transfer window.
To add to that, the kit manufacturers Nike designed a very unpopular home kit for the Catalan club that attracted the fans’ widespread discontent on social media – but to the fans’ relief, Barcelona finally seems to have got something right for a change.
The La Liga outfit are all set to release an exclusive kit only for the 21/22 UEFA Champions League season, a kit that they will only wear on the European nights under the floodlights.
The kit hosts the traditional Blaugrana colours that are synonymous with the club, but it is the manner in which the red and blue complement each other that truly makes the kit as great as it is.
The Champions League home kit introduces a bold take on the classic colours as the shirt features red stripes on a blue backdrop, accented by different printed patterns on both front and back sides.
The sleeves are completely blue while the collars, sleeve cuffs, and the stripes on the sides feature dark blue accents to sharpen the effect – while the kit manufacturers’ logo, the sponsors’ logo, and the club crest are clad in yellow to complete the look.
As for the significance of the patterns on the shirt, it has been suggested that the shirt features illustrations of the famous landmarks in the Catalan city neighbourhoods in order to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the Olympic Games being hosted in Barcelona.
Those landmarks include, among others, the three chimneys of Poble Sac, and the original La Masia – which is located right next to the world-famous Camp Nou.
The same graphics appear throughout the Barcelona 21-22 Champions League collection, not just the on-pitch kit, including a t-shirt that got leaked earlier this year.
Since the new CL edition kit was leaked, it has garnered mostly positive reviews from the club supporters who seem to prefer the Champions League home kit more than the actual home kit for the season.
Judging by the reaction to the kit on social media platforms, it would not be an understatement to say that Barcelona have missed a trick (again) by not swapping their home kit for their European attire.
