The start of any football season is a time of great excitement for fans while casual observers and kit connossiers alike also take a keen interest in the fashionable side of football, namely the new kits for the new campaign.
The Chinese Super League is no different.
After years of complaints that Nike – who have a leaguewide deal for the 16 teams – used only basic templates for teams, kit design has become more interesting in recent seasons.
The onus is on the club to push for a bespoke design and some have made the effort again for the 2021 campaign, while some thought has also gone in to the change of team colours.
CSL team jerseys are now available globally with Nike selling them from their various global websites and plenty of the burgeoning market of kit stores also pushing them.
While some CSL clubs have gone mainstream – Beijing Guoan, Shanghai Shenhua and Guangzhou FC are available on general sports sites in the UK – others are almost impossible to track down, even in China.
The official Nike China store only carries jerseys for Beijing Guoan, Shanghai Shenhua and Guangzhou FC and the now non-existent champions Jiangsu FC.
Jiangsu’s new shirt features a star for winning their first title last December but it will never be worn – something that will make it of more interest to collectors.
Arguably, Chinese Super League kits are more of interest than what happens on the pitch.
Manufacturer Nike appear to have ridden the wave of public fury that met its stance on Xinjiang cotton from last month.
The teams taping over the swoosh, as seen in training ground photos from preseason, has stopped.
The league-wide deal, which lasts until 2029, has seen at least one new kit for all 16 teams this season, with circumstances demanding that some have to have both.
Not all of them have been released yet despite the season starting, while another anomaly is that despite teams having to change their names they will not have new badges.
As the shirts were made well ahead of time, as is common with companies as large as Nike, most of the crests used were pre-rebrand.
Club crests for some teams have been redesigned already – with the Tianjin Jinmen Tiger being the biggest departure from their past life as Tianjin Teda.
Here is every kit that has been confirmed so far for this season.
Beijing Guoan will wear a new home kit, which some have linked to a watermelon (as often happens with their kits).
They will continue using last season’s white away kit.
The Cangzhou Mighty Lions have a new look to go with their new name and new home.
Formerly Shijiazhuang Ever Bright, the team wore an all white away kit for their season opening loss to Qingdao.
Their home kit has yet to be released.
Newly promoted Changchun Yatai have swapped China League One provider Kelme for CSL manufacturer Nike.
Their home kits are a two-tone red number, while their away kit is an all-white template.
They wore the latter in their win over Dalian Pro.
Chongqing have kept the faith with last season’s home kit of red with blue and white hoops at the hem of the shirt.
They have a new away kit with a blue and red contrast stripe effect and a both colours on the collar.
Chongqing were one of the few teams to embrace their new looks by also releasing a video.
Dalian Pro have stuck with last season’s camo blue jerseys.
They have not yet released images of their away kit.
Guangzhou City have a stunning new away shirt with a jagged blue contrast accented by a gold swoosh and sponsor print.
Their home shirt has yet to be seen but based on other teams presumably they will reuse last season’s design.
Guangzhou FC have a new home shirt with animal print, as they have used in previous seasons.
The new red shirt is paired with last season’s yellow and grey away kit.
Hebei’s new home kits have a three-tone contrast on the red shirts accented by the yellow swoosh, crest detailing and sponsor.
They will wear last season’s white away kit.
Henan have opted to keep last season’s striped red shirts but have paired it with a bold new away shirt.
The blue shirt has a flecked pattern and white panelling.
Qingdao’s Barcelona-inspired kit design continues with a classic stripe, that are thicker than last season’s.
They have not yet released an away kit.
Shandong Taishan’s orange home shirt features a digital pattern not used elsewhere in the CSL.
They are using last season’s away kit as seen against Chongqing.
Shanghai Port have opted for last season’s home kit with it’s unusual take on stripes.
They have a new away kit with the white body of the shirt contrasted with grey patterned sleeves and red piping.
Shanghai Shenhua’s decision to have a red sash on their famous blue shirts has not gone down well with all of their supporters.
The design, which also features a sublimated pattern in the blue, echoes their crest.
They will continue with last season’s white away shirt.
Shenzhen deserve the award for most thoughtful kits – if such awards were handed out.
Their orange home kits – changed from red last season -are a nod to when the team were champions as Shenzhen Jianlibao in 2004.
In a similar fashion, the green away kits use the colours of the team when they were Shenzhen Ping’an in the seasons before.
The Tianjin Jinmen Tigers have a new crest and a new kit to go with it.
They wore a purple contrast stripe shirt in their season opening 6-1 defeat to Shanghai Port.
Presumably they will have a white away kit.
First image of the new Nike Wuhan FC home shirt for the 2021 Chinese Super League season. pic.twitter.com/4ivtrP8gha
— Jonathan White (@jmawhite) April 23, 2021
Wuhan FC’s new orange home shirt features several different shades of orange in its distinctive pattern, with some likening it to a Phoenix being reborn from ashes. Others, however, have been less kind.
