Nostalgia is becoming a familiar feeling for football fans.
Whether or not there’s a hint of rose-tinted glasses about it, supporters are yearning for a return to the old days, when things just felt better.
Even the kits, now worn as fashion statements as much as an indicator of fandom, were more beautiful.
La Liga launch kit campaign
And La Liga appears to have noticed this, launching an initiative that will see teams from Spain’s top two divisions wear retro kits for this weekend’s games.
The purpose of this is to pay homage to clubs’ histories and fan traditions, a welcome cause when so many owners across world football seem indifferent to such things.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, both Real Madrid and Barcelona will wear their 2025/26 kits as usual.
Barcelona, alongside Rayo Vallecano, and Getafe, are at least still involved in the campaign, despite not wearing a retro kit.
Real Madrid, though, are not participating, clearly not concerned by such trivialities.
It is not just the players that will take on an old-school look in La Liga this weekend: the referees will wear a special kit, television broadcasts will have a retro aesthetic and a vintage match ball will be used.
La Liga is the first of Europe’s top five leagues to launch a retro shirt campaign, with the kits unveiled at Madrid fashion week last month.
"It allows us to bring the past into the present while continuing to build experiences and strengthen the legacy that emotionally connects with supporters," said La Liga director Jaime Blanco.
"Presenting this collection during Spain's leading fashion week is the perfect platform to project that identity beyond the field and position soccer at the heart of the cultural and creative conversation."
While Real Madrid focus on the oh-so-important pursuit of yet more titles to add to their ever-expanding cabinet, the rest of Spain’s clubs will celebrate something more intangible, but no less meaningful.
