Manchester United Football Club is an English football club that plays in the Premier League. The Red Devils as they are commonly known have more than 300 million world-wide supporters. Meaning that out of every 20 people on earth, one of them will be a Manchester United Fan! Currently managed by Sir Alex Ferguson, Manchester United are one of the most successful teams in the history of English football having won 21 major titles since he became manager in 1986. During its remarkable history, many distinguished players have run out in the famous Manchester United shirt which can trace its origins back when Manchester United were known as Newton Heath Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway Football Club.

When the club went under the Newton Heath moniker, the shirts were constructed of yellow and green panels – 1892), and looked a bit like a jockey’s silks. Some additional colour schemes were also employed such as a red and white shirt (1892-1894) paired with blue shorts. This all changed in 1902 when the club changed its name to Manchester United, the club radically altered the kit colours to red shirts, white shorts and black socks. The red, white and black scheme has been used for the home strip ever since. The away strip is white jerseys, black shorts and white socks however different looks to this strip have existed. The most notorious of these was the all-grey strip employed in the 1995-1996 campaign. The club did not win a single game when sporting the grey shirts. The team were vociferous in their claims that the drab colour meant they had difficulty seeing their team-mates, hence passes were being sprayed all over the pitch! Another variation was the all-black kit used in 1994 and 2003. There is also a “Third Strip”. This shirt which is not often used, is an homage to the kit worn when the club won the 1968 European Cup. From time to time, the team uses shirts normally reserved for the training ground.

For home games this season, the shirt in use is the traditional red with some alterations such as the vertical white stripe running down the back. On the bottom-left corner of the shirt, there is a “Red Devils” patch showing the club’s famous mascot. By contrast, the away shirt in use today is white with blue piping at the edges. It has red trim on the neck and the club emblem is on a white background on the left breast. The club emblem is pictured on a white background shield situated on the left breast. The emblem has been altered through the years but was originally designed based on the crest of the City of Manchester. The “Red Devil” motif was added in the 1960s after Sir Matt Busby saw the name in use by a Salford rugby team and decided it perfectly fitted the Manchester United ethos and style of play.

Hopefully this article has given an informative insight into the history of the Manchester United Shirt, and should you be asked on “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire” for the colour scheme of the Newton Railways Club shirt, you won’t need to phone a friend!

Patrick Attlee is a free-lance writer who writes about football / soccer. Passionate about the Beautiful Game, he is particularly interested in the strips of the big English clubs and how they have changed throughout the years. For more information about the Manchester United Shirt, please visit => http://www.manchester-united-shirt.com

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