The Proud History Of The Arsenal Shirt



Posted: Monday, April 27, 2009

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Arsenal, or The Arsenal are a football club in England playing in the "Top Flight" Premier League. Fondly known by their nickname, The Gunners", their home ground is the Emirates Stadium in North London. Currently managed by Arsene Wenger, The Gunners are one of the most successful teams in England.

Arsenal were founded in 1886 as Dial Square and based in Woolwich in the south-east of London. They renamed themselves Woolwich Arsenal after turning professional in 1891. In 1913 they moved north to Highbury before moving to the brand-new Emirates Stadium in 2006. Arsenal are also one of the richest clubs in England valued at over 600 million pounds.

The selection of the colour red as the principal colour of the Arsenal shirt has an interesting history. Shortly after the formation of Dial Square as the team was being assembled, it was realised that no kit could be found. Two of the founding members were ex-Nottingham Forest players who had moved south looking for work. These two men wrote back to Nottingham Forest asking for help and received a set of kit and a ball. Naturally, coming from Nottingham Forest, the kit was dark red. The kit was completed with white shorts and blue socks. The kit was update in 1933 to the now familiar pillar box red with white sleeves. It is said that the white sleeves were inspired by a fan seen in the stands wearing a red sleeveless jumper over a white shirt. This strip has remained unchanged apart from two seasons. The first in 1966-67 was when Arsenal wore all red shirts. The second occasion was in the 2006 season, the last to be played at Highbury when the team reverted to the darker, blackcurrant colours worn in the first Highbury season of 1913.

The Arsenal shirt used for away games has been mostly the familiar yellow and blue but again there have been exceptions. A green and navy blue shirt was used in the 1982-1984 seasons. Since 1990 the away strip has changed more frequently to take advantage of the replica shirt market. Blue designs have been used in addition to the substitution of the traditional yellow, with gold. Currently the away shirt in use at the end of each season is rotated to the Third Shirt.

The crest sewn onto the Arsenal shirt has been modified over the years as well. The first crest dating to 1888 was made up of three cannon viewed from above, pointing north. This design resembled the Borough Of Woolwich's coat of arms. Each cannon was decorated with the head of a lion and a cascabel. This design did not survive the move to Highbury. The now-familiar single cannon crest was introduced in 1925. The crest was modified again in 1949. The cannon was unchanged but the name "Arsenal" was added above the gun. The Islington coat of arms was placed beneath the gun and a scroll with the club's new motto beneath that. In 2002, in order to create a simpler crest that was copy-writable, a new crest was introduced with the cannon once again facing east with the green colour being replaced by dark blue.

This article has hopefully provided an interesting insight into the history of the Arsenal Shirt from the Dial Square amateur days to the professional, huge money team now plying their trade at the Emirates Stadium.

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Patrick Attlee is a prolific writer on the subject of the Beautiful Game. He has a particular interest in the big clubs of England. You can read more about the Arsenal shirt at http://www.arsenal-shirt.com
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