According to John Blair, in his book A Culture of Kits: The Definitive Guide to Classic Football Shirt Collecting, the football shirt is “a symbol. A memory. A historical artefact. A way of life.”
Perhaps we would all feel the same if we were all Real Madrid fans. It is, perhaps, a bit more challenging to argue that a Charlton Athletic shirt is “a way of life”, unless, of course, that way is a deep trauma bond. Nonetheless, while that particular assertion may feel a touch grandiose to some, it is impossible to argue against the cultural and historical significance of the football shirt to its fans.
In A Culture of Kits, Blair sets out the nine pillars that define a classic shirt: success on the pitch, player association, design, sponsorship, controversy, nostalgia, milestone, scarcity, size of the fan base. Looking at those criteria, Real Madrid automatically ticks a lot of boxes. Certainly at the club, few players can be accused as – as the classic slur goes – unfit to wear the shirt.
By far and away the most successful club in Europe, Real can claim a whopping 36 La Liga, 20 Copa del Rey, and 15 Champions League titles in its impressive 123-year history. Iconic players to have worn the shirt include Ronaldo (the first one), David Beckham, Michael Owen, Zinedine Zidane, Gareth Bale, Raúl, and Christiano Ronaldo, to name just a handful.
As they look to make more history this summer, Los Blancos will have to get past Arsenal to claim a 16th title and score a few more goals to overtake rivals Barcelona in the domestic league. Nonetheless, with everything still to play for, perhaps this current squad of superstars, including Kylian Mbappe, Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Junior, can consign another shirt to the pantheon of classics made famous by Spain’s royal favourites.
Best Real Madrid shirts at a glance
- Best overall: Home 2001/02 - £94.32, eBay
- Best for modernisers: Home 1982-83 - £39.99, Club Retros
- Best for royalists: Away 1982-5 - £125.52, eBay
- Best for animal magic: Home 1994-97 - £109.91, eBay
- Best for shock results: Away 1999/2001 - £150, eBay
- Best for proving the doubters wrong: Away 2002/03 - £89.99, eBay
- Best for forgetting: Home 2004/05 - £79.99, eBay
- Best for nostalgia lovers: Home 2015/16 - £34.99, Classic Football Kit
- Best for current strip: Real Madrid Home Shirt 24/25, Replica with Official License - £35.59, Amazon
- Best for standing out in the pub: Real Madrid - MBAPPE, Adult, Replica Away Shirt 24/25 - £33.88, Amazon
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Real Madrid Home 2001/02
Best: Overall
Founded in 1902 as plain old Madrid Football Club (the royal prefix was handed to them by King Alfonso XIII in 1920), the club celebrated its centenary in 2002.
To celebrate, the home shirt worn in the centenary year was stripped (no pun intended) back in homage to the original. No sponsor, just a white shirt with simple black Adidas detail and the club’s badge, it was worn by Zizou himself as he scored the winning goal in spectacular style to give Real their ninth Champions League title.
His famed volley past the Bayern Leverkusen keeper from the edge of the penalty area is one of the sweetest moments in the club’s history.
Buy now £94.32, eBay
Real Madrid Home 1982-83
Best for: modernisers
This home shirt perhaps won’t be remembered for the football, with Real claiming runners-up prizes almost across the board in 1982/83, slumping to worse results still, the following season, although by the end of the shirt’s run, it could at least lay claim to a Europa League – or UEFA Cup, as it was then known - title.
It did, nonetheless, see the arrival of Adidas in Madrid as kit-makers, to stunning effect. The original trefoil logo and triple-stripe on the arms, the V-neck and ever so slightly sleazy collar (something of a Seventies throwback), this shirt oozes vintage style.
Buy now £39.95, Club Retro
Real Madrid Away 1982-85
Best for: royalists
Leaning fully into their regal heritage, the early ‘80s saw Los Blancos rocking a selection of purple away shirts. As with the accompanying home shirt, this did not oversee a particularly successful campaign on the pitch. More notably, however, was that the shirt featured Real’s first ever sponsor, home appliances company and football shirt stalwart, Zanussi. It has all the charm of the home kit of the same era, but it’s purple. You can almost smell the Brut Aquatonic and feel the gentle rustle of mullet in the breeze, just by looking at it. Majestic. These shirts are rare, and even replicas are hard to come by, but occasionally you might be able to track one down on ebay.
Buy now £125.51, eBay
Real Madrid Home 1994-97
Best for: animal magic
The year was 1992 and another home appliances company, German brand Teka, took over shirt sponsorship, and in 1994 a four-year contract with Kelme – nope, us either – began.
This home shirt features Kelme’s “distinctive” paw print logo down the arms. It’s probably fair to say that Kelme has fallen from grace a bit since then - it’s now the kit-maker for Scunthorpe United and Belfast Star Basketball, but back in the mid-90s they were worn by Clarence Seedorf and Roberto Carlos, to name but two.
As for the results, Real won La Liga in both the 94/95 and 96/97 seasons in this shirt, although those pesky paw prints were banned in European competitions, due to UEFA regulations.
Buy now £109.91, eBay
Real Madrid Away 1999/2001
Best for: shock results
The dying days of the Teka sponsorship saw a tricky time in the domestic league for Real, and the eventual sacking of Welsh manager John Toshak in November 1999.
That said, Real only lost two league matches in this dapper away shirt despite a much-changed squad. That season, the team still managed to win the Champions League despite a fifth-placed Liga finish. This shirt with its bold orange contrast, marked the beginning of a lengthy spell in black away shirts, as well as a much shorter spell at the club for Nicolas Anelka.
Buy now £150.00, eBay
Real Madrid Away 2002/03
Best for: proving the doubters wrong
Between 2000 and 2006, then club president Florentino Pérez pursued the so-called “galácticos” policy, that is, he brought a shed load of global superstars to the Bernabéu, at a rate of at least one per summer during that period.
The 2002 summer signing was Ronaldo – the original – who spent the first part of the season sidelined through injury, fuelling some chat around whether or not his star was waning. The doubters were quickly silenced, not least during the second leg of Real’s Champions League quarter-final against Manchester United, at Old Trafford where, in this shirt, he scored a hattrick.
Although they ultimately lost the match 4-3, it was enough to put them through on aggregate, and the Brazilian’s performance was so spellbinding that both sets of fans gave him a standing ovation as he left the pitch, having been substituted in the 67th minute.
Buy now £89.99, eBay
Real Madrid Home 2004/05
Best for: forgetting
The favourite shirt of Declan Rice as a kid, the England and Arsenal midfielder claims to remember wearing the “iconic” kit constantly while on holiday with his family one summer. Rice’s shirt was adorned with the name of another galáctico, David Beckham, who joined in 2003.
The shirt is memorable – all white with the Siemens sponsorship associated with that great time in the club’s history – but the football was not. They exited the Champions League that year in the final 16, and also missed out on the Liga top spot to arch rivals Barcelona by four points.
Buy now £79.99, eBay
Real Madrid Home 2015/16
Best for: nostalgia lovers
In January 2016 the prodigal son returned to Real Madrid’s first team as Zinedin Zidane succeeded Rafael Benitez to become the head coach. Having seen out the end of his playing career at Real, Zizou had already enjoyed a spell coaching the club’s B team, and was quick to make an impact following his promotion.
Presiding over a stunning squad, including the likes of Luka Modric, Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, Zidane steered his side to the first of his three Champions League wins as manager, beating local rivals Atletico Madrid 5-3 on penalties. A fairytale ending, indeed.
Buy now £34.99, Classic Football Kit
Real Madrid Home Shirt, Kit Season 24/25, Replica Jersey with Official License
Best for: current strip
Whether you're revelling in the squad's rockstar line-up of rooting for them in this year's competitions, wear your support on your chest with this replica 24/25 jersey. Options are available for kids as young as four while the adult sizing options run to 2XL.
Buy now £35.59, Amazon
Real Madrid - MBAPPE, Adult, Replica Away Shirt 24/25 Season with Official Licence
Best for: standing out in the pub
There'll be no missing you in a crowded pub garden in this replica away shirt with one of the club's greatest players in modern history splayed across the back. The crew neck design is an official replica and comes in a range of adult sizes.
Buy now £33.88, Amazon
Verdict
Looking back at Blair’s criteria, the 2001/02 home shirt is the standout that seems to have it all: success on the pitch, player association, design, sponsorship (which is notable by its absence, in this case), nostalgia, milestone, and the size of the fan base is pretty much a constant – the only thing it’s missing is controversy. And who needs controversy when you have a goal like that.
