For the upcoming World Cup, we’re going to provide a daily kit-tracker, showing what the participating countries wear against each other, featuring outfield and goalkeeper kits as well as those of the officials.
As part of the build-up, we’ve been featuring notable strips from World Cups of old, and we’re ramping that up with retrospective kit-trackers from 1970 and 1990. First up is the 1970 Group 1, featuring hosts Mexico, USSR, Belgium and El Salvador.
Mexico 1 USSR 0
Both countries in home kits. Referees for the competition wore their own kits (FIFA provided breast patches), with West German Kurt Tschenscher essentially donning a zip-up jacket.
El Salvador 0 Belgium 3
For reasons best known to themselves, Belgium had long-sleeved shirts, not ideal for the Mexican heat. This was actually their away kit, with all-white favoured as the first choice, while goalkeeper Christian Piot’s jersey had a cummerbund effect.
Belgium 1 USSR 4
While both sides had worn white shorts when Mexico played the USSR, here the Soviets changed to navy. The Umbro logo was placed near the top of the Belgium shorts.
Mexico 4 El Salvador 0
A shorts and socks change for El Salvador, with Calderón switching from white to red. Note the shirt of referee Ali Kandil from the United Arab Republic – no white collar and rare short sleeves.
USSR 2 El Salvador 0
Chilean referee Rafarl Hormazábal Díaz wore the older-style jacket with white shirt underneath.
Belgium 0 Mexico 1
We presume Mexico’s change to their second kit was to avoid a shorts-clash. It meant a third different shirt for Mexico goalkeeper Ignacio Calderón, while his opposite number Piot may have expected Mexico to be in green, hence his orange top.
Best way I can explain how this page makes me feel is it equates with the overwhelming sensations of love and lust engendered by walking into a Greggs with a well-stocked cake counter. I’m over 21 stone – I speak with authority.
Would be worth it for that Mexico away kit alone. But had no idea Belgium did the “full Austria” with a historical away kit-home kit swap. Then the goalies’ tops … AND the refs’ … Ali Kandil is literally the coolest.
… this – this page is why I’m so fat.
Speaking about the manufacturers, Mexico’s shirts were manufactured by a firm named Rigg (according to “Uniformes Seleccion Mexicana”, @UniformesSelec1, a Twitter user which documents Mexico national football team’s uniforms), while the Soviets wore Olimpiada (a local brand)-branded jerseys.