- – Thanks to Jay for making us aware of this
The newest entry in this series differs from the previous offerings.
While it is a kit only worn in Europe, it’s not a ‘European kit’ per se – however, due to how it is manufactured, the end result is a notable difference from the corresponding strip worn in domestic action.
With Uefa regulations necessitating clearly visible numbers on the backs of shirts, Celtic generally have to wear a modified shirt for the Champions League or Europa League.
As an aside, it’s worth noting that, on one of the rare occasions where they had a space for the numbers, their 1997-99 shirt, a change was still needed for Europe in the second of those seasons as the numbers were white on white with a green outline.
Since 2020, Celtic have worn kit made by adidas and the style of shirt construction used by the German firm for the 2024-25 season is a key factor in how the jerseys worn for the Champions League deviate from those used in the Scottish Premiership.
On most adidas shirts this season, there is a front, a back and side panels that sweep around the lower back – the Arsenal shirt, with its contrasting red and white, shows this well.
However, on hooped tops, like the Celtic home or Newcastle United away, the sides and back are the one piece of fabric.
For Celtic, that means that, where their European home shirt often has a plain white back, this time around the change can also be seen when looking at the shirt from the front.
The instinct in these situations is to blame Uefa and their over-the-top officiousness – but, while they do stipulate the need for a number zone on shirts with contrasting stripes, hoops or halves, they are quite clear that there only needs to be a few centimetres free around each side of the number, helpfully illustrating so in their Equipment Regulations document.
Clearly, the route taken was the path of least resistance for adidas – and, with Celtic through the group phase and into a playoff against Bayern Munich, the numbers are not the biggest concern.
Equally, though, one wonders why they didn’t just do the same for their men’s team as for their women – their European shirts simply have a white patch placed over the hoops to house the number.
