How often do football clubs change kits?

Loved by fans across the world and central to games for generations, it’s hard to imagine a football match without classic, uniform kits. Over time, football kits have become more than just sports attire, transforming into iconic representations of club achievements, as well as acting as proud memorabilia of favourite games and moments that will go down in history. A team’s football gear is at the forefront of every moment on the pitch, providing leading clubs with individual identities, so it’s understandable why new kit launches are highly anticipated.

In this post, we look into how often the most well-known Premier League clubs change kits, considering the influence that rising football gear trends and high-profile brand deals between clubs and kit manufacturers have had on the frequency of football kit changes.

How often do football clubs change kits?

An unwritten rule that became commonplace in the late 90s for Premier League clubs, it was initially common for football kit changes to occur every two seasons at most. This meant that fans could keep the same kits during that time and didn’t have to worry about buying new memorabilia too often. However, this was never a set regulation and was therefore slowly phased out until disappearing completely in 2010/2011. This period marked a significant change, with what was seen as a groundbreaking move; changes in kit designs would now take place every season. 

Traditionally, clubs have always had away kits, home kits and third choice kits, and the 2010/11 change meant that, being the main gear of Britain’s top clubs, home kit designs were changed each season, as they still are today. However, it was reported that the decision initially received a mixed response, as critics claimed that frequent football gear changes made it harder to associate a single kit with the highlights of a particular season, as well as purchasing football kits more often proving to be costly for fans. 

Why do football kits change every season? 

A main contributor to football kits changing every season, in recent years, there seems to have been a rising demand for specific trends, which appear to have been driven by the rise in football shirt ecommerce stores. In particular, sales for retro football kits seem to have taken off, appearing to have influenced official Premier League team kits. And as football gear trends change, frequent kit changes can help to cater to these demands. 

Sellers on shopping platforms such as eBay and Depop also appear to have caught on to the demand, with classic kit designs having recently witnessed a rapid increase in value. According to i News, in 2020/2021, searches for retro kits on eBay increased by almost 140%. Due to the sheer scale of the football memorabilia market having some influence on rapid kit changes, it seems that sellers will always be able to find an opportunity for rising trends in football gear.

Another reason that football kit changes have become more frequent since 2010/11 is the increase in high profile deals between Premier League Clubs and leading football kit manufacturers. Following their initial popularity in the early 2000s, these deals have continued to grow, eventually resulting in kit designs changing every season to meet demands. Kit suppliers often also undergo agreements with well-known teams to make the shirts and sell replica versions to fans.

Bradford City AFC and Avec Sport

Helping to represent some of the reasons why football kits change more frequently, the last three home kits for Bradford City have been designed by our talented team at Avec Sport. 

Starting with the 2017/18 home kits, the jersey returned to the club’s classic vertical claret and amber stripe design, with claret shorts and socks also making a return for the season. While the 2019/20 home jersey again featured the clubs traditional claret and amber stripes, this time separated by black pinstripes and with a round-neck collar and sleeves featuring a black trim. Completed with black shorts featuring an amber trim, in addition to black socks including ‘Bantams’ in text, overall, the 19/20 season's kit represented a demand for pulling kits back to basics. 

Drawing inspiration from the club’s promotion to the third tier in the 1981/82 season, the 2021/22 kit celebrated the 40th anniversary of this memorable event, as well as relating to the ongoing demand for retro kits we’ve seen in recent years. The white jersey features claret and amber stripes across the v-neck collar and shoulders and Avec Sport branding in the same colour down the sleeves.

Football Kit Changes at Avec Sport

Previously released every two seasons, brand new football kit designs are brought out more frequently than ever before, following the increasing growth and value of brand deals between the biggest football clubs and kit manufacturers and demand for rising trends. 

If you’re interested in following the footsteps of England's most well-known premier league teams and changing your club's own football teamwear every season, browse our range of Team Kits today, which feature jerseys, shorts, socks and more, in adult and juniors sizes. 

These include a customisable kit option, where gear can be personalised with our online kit builder to include a team crest, sponsor logos, as well as individual names and numbers for a touch of extra personalisation.