The Ugliest Kits in History

I recently read an article on the Spanish daily ‘Marca’ where they make note on the Bleacher’s Report’s ranking of the most horrific jersey’s of all time (well according to them). I was unable to find the list on their website so I will post what ‘Marca’ had on their article. Let me warn you some of these kits my cause for eyes to burn, indigestion, and a small but irritable itch all curable with some ointment J

In the list of the top 20, Athletic Bilbao made the cut with their infamous ‘ketchup jersey’, which was designed by the Bilbao painter Dario Urzay. The ketchup design would later be retired by the club.

Another ‘gem’ in the list is Fiorentina’s 1992 jersey where the design gave the optical effect of being the swastika sign. As soon as many began to protest against the jersey, the club decided to stop the production of the kits. An apology soon followed to its fans and Ultras. A truly distasteful moment for Fiorentina.

 

Then there is Hull City, recently promoted to the Premier League, are known as the Tigers for their traditional black and amber striped shirt. However, in the 90’s the club took the nickname ‘the tigers’ to the extreme and produced a tiger skin design. Unpopular to the fans and to the eyes of many.

How can anyone forget the ridiculous kit Mexican goalkeeper Jorge Campos would wear? His neon attire became a trademark for the successful goalkeeper, who self designed the neon jerseys. He sure stood out from the rest and fans loved him for it.

Finally, there is the Caribous of Colorado of the now deceased North American Soccer League. The club did not last long just only a year, like many other clubs from the 70’s, but due to its awesomely bad uniform its legacy will forever live on.

 

 

Milan Have To Pay the Price…

        

When Milan only signed Pato and Emmerson at the beginning of the season, they were signing their fate. It is too late now to say who is at fault for the current situation, but all that can be said is that it is an utter failure of a season. Not even the Super Cup or the World Cup of Clubs can hide the fact that Milan was a flop in every sense. When you do not win anything in the season, place fifth in the domestic league 21 points behind arch rivals Inter, and to end up in Uefa is a complete slap across a Rossonerro’s face. This season does not leave much to be proud of but only that of regret.

       For Milan to play Uefa is almost like being relegated to Seria B. It is a huge blow for a team that in the last couple of years have been dominators of the competition. Of course Uefa deserves all respect, but nothing is equivalent for a club like the Champions League. So for some players to say that it is not a big deal to play Uefa and not Champions League, really need to check themselves because it is a big deal. If Milan cannot recognise that, then they never really deserved to go.

           Ultimately, Milan were never good enough through out the whole season to place even fourth. On the other hand, Fiorentina played an extraordinary season not only in Seria A but in Uefa as well. A humble team that displayed some of the best football in Italy, and it really would not have been fair to have gone to the Champions when Fiore had been the most deserving team. It just was not meant to be and for that reason when Milan were fourth and lost to Napoli two weeks ago, justice was served to Fiorentina, giving them the final ticket to Champions.  Silly Milan believed that their history would guide them through to fourth but they all forgot that the present is what matters most.

        Therefore, this does bring an end to a glorious era but hopefully leads to an even better one to come. It will probably do Milan good to play in Uefa and reflect in the mistakes made in the campaign. Uefa or what some are calling ‘Purgatory’, will help Milan to once again give importance to the Seria A and not just Europe. By not playing Champions Milan are to lose 30 to 60 million Euros making it even more difficult to bring new players, but that is fundamental to restructure this team. Their road to recovery may be difficult but it is one that the players will have to partake in along with the fans.

         Finally, with Milan’s absence from next years Champions League should leave many teams with a sigh of relief. Certainly there are teams that will be glad that Milan will not be there, but all I have to say is for them to enjoy it for now, because Milan will be back to reclaim their place in the European stage. Good bye for now Champions League, see you in 2009.