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Cristiano Ronaldo is tackled by Micah Richards during the Premier League match between Manchester United and Manchester City at Old Trafford, Manchester, February 2008.

13 iconic kits that were shamefully only worn once ft. Man Utd, Barcelona & Chelsea…

Michael Lee •

We love a good football kit at Planet Football and these one-off jerseys from the likes of Barcelona, Chelsea and Manchester United among others have truly hit our sweet spot.

Whether they’re celebrating anniversaries or a third kit that only sees the light of day as a marketing exercise, these blink-and-you’ll-miss-them shirts have been elevated to cult status due to their scarcity.

We’ve identified 13 of the most gorgeous football shirts that only got one outing and became ‘must-haves’ for kit collectors everywhere.

Manchester United (2008)

In 2008, Manchester United marked 50 years since the Munich Air Disaster with a beautiful and solemn tribute before their match against Manchester City.

The all-red shirt with white trim had no badge and no logos, while the numbers on the back were straight from the 1950s. It was a startling sight in the modern era, but an incredibly classy turn from United.

For their part, City wore sponsorless shirts for the occasion and left Old Trafford with a 2-1 victory. Definitely the gold standard for tribute shirts.

England (1991)

You’ve definitely seen this before. Whether it be in the video for ‘World in Motion’ or during those summer tournament nights in the beer garden, England’s blue diamond kit from 1990 has become a national staple. It might even be responsible for the retro kit boom itself.

But it was only worn once by the England team, with Dennis Wise scoring the only goal in a European Championship qualifier against Turkey in 1991.

On the other hand, the Lionesses wore blue in their 2023 Women’s World Cup victory over Australia and will do so again in the final against Spain.

Manchester City (2019)

Worn for the 2019 Community Shield victory over Liverpool, this City offering was simple and sophisticated. They’ve never quite got that sky blue so right since…

France (2019)

The collar, the blue Nike Swoosh, the gold detailing… France’s 2019 centenary kit can have our money, our job and our children. 

France's Olivier Giroud celebrates after scoring his side's 2nd goal during the Euro 2020 qualifier between France and Iceland at Stade de France, Saint Denis, March 2019.

France’s Olivier Giroud celebrates after scoring his side’s 2nd goal during the Euro 2020 qualifier between France and Iceland at Stade de France, Saint-Denis, March 2019.

Toulouse (2017)

With a v-neck collar and retro-style lace, Toulouse celebrated 80 years in 2017 with style. Certainly with more style than the 0-0 draw with Marseille would indicate. 

Marseille's French midfielder Florian Thauvin (L) runs with the ball by Toulouse's French midfielder Yann Bodiger (R) during the French L1 football match between Toulouse and Marseille, on April 9, 2017 at the Municipal Stadium in Toulouse, southern France.

Marseille’s French midfielder Florian Thauvin (L) runs with the ball by Toulouse’s French midfielder Yann Bodiger (R) during the French L1 football match between Toulouse and Marseille, on April 9, 2017 at the Municipal Stadium in Toulouse, southern France.

Chelsea (2020)

Half a century on from the vintage 1970 side that beat Leeds (physically and metaphorically) to lift the FA Cup, Chelsea wore a classic shirt that felt less like a redesign of an old favourite and more like a… blue-out kit.

The sponsor was still visible on this one in a different shade of blue, while the vertical line on the back of the collar from the regular home kit was yellow for this one – just the 1970 kit’s trim.

The inclusion of a classic Chelsea badge was the icing on an extremely delicious cake.

Borussia Dortmund (2019)

Football hipsters couldn’t get enough of Dortmund in the 2010s and this all-back offering only cemented their status amongst Mundial reading, chai-latte sipping & quinoa munching classes.

Barcelona (2009)

At first glance, this is a bit of an eyesore; the red/orange/blue stripe looks like an explosion at a paint factory.

But you soon realise the folly of your initial judgement. Worn against Manchester City in 2009, Nike used strong primary colours to create an absolute masterpiece.

Just look at young Lionel wearing it. Football heritage.

Barcelona's Lionel Messi is tackeld during the Joan Gamper Trophy match between Barcelona and Manchester City at the Camp Nou Stadium in Barcelona, Spain on August 19, 2009.

Barcelona’s Lionel Messi is tackled during the Joan Gamper Trophy match between Barcelona and Manchester City at the Camp Nou Stadium in Barcelona, Spain on August 19, 2009.

Germany (1991)

Worn just once, during a 1-0 win against England at Wembley, this German offering uses the same template as their Hall-of-Famer Italia ’90 home kit and we’ve spent the last hour gazing at that collar.

No wonder every single kit designer has mined the 90s for inspiration since ‘Get Lucky’ was released.

Poland (2019)

Poland marked their centenary in 2019 in a shirt that wasn’t particularly outlandish, simply looking to reflect the nation’s flag while looking a little like the kit Kylian Mbappe wore during Monaco’s run to the Champions League semis in 2017.

But the result made everybody feel a little bit warmer inside.

Robert Lewandowski of Poland celebrates his scoring during the UEFA Euro 2020 Qualifiers Group G match between Poland and Slovenia at PGE National Stadium in Warsaw, Poland on November 19, 2019.

Robert Lewandowski of Poland celebrates his scoring during the UEFA Euro 2020 Qualifiers Group G match between Poland and Slovenia at PGE National Stadium in Warsaw, Poland on November 19, 2019.

Juventus (2019)

On paper, bright green and bright orange probably shouldn’t work with faded stripes and cloud graphics. Indeed, it sounds like the creation of a designer that’s over-indulged in funghi.

Yet this shirt – which was worn in a game against Genoa – looked like it had landed from another galaxy, especially compared to some Juve’s more generic offerings in recent years.

Fiorentina (1999)

Oof.

Netherlands & Portugal (2005)

Concocted as an anti-racism message for a series of friendlies, Nike introduced powerful black-and-white-halved tops in 2005 for their Stand Up Speak Up campaign, alongside those wristbands that were ubiquitous at the time.

Various Nike sides wore them, with Netherlands donning their top away to England in a match memorable for Sven sticking debutant Andy Johnson on the wing for sh*ts and giggles.

The England shirts had “No to racism” in silver under the numbers, to support the message, while Portugal also wore the black-and-white halves against the Republic of Ireland.

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