Images of Chelsea's potential kit trio for next season have been leaked online. With the summer fast approaching and involvement in the Club World Cup, without a true pre-season plan yet to be announced, it is action stations.
Chelsea will face a race against time to wear their new kit for the tournament in America at the end of this season. It starts just two weeks after the last Premier League matches are played.
New kits are usually debuted in the final round of matches ahead of pre-season or then during a summer tour. Chelsea's off-season looks very different this year, though.
It has not stopped leaks of the home, away, third, and goalkeeper shirts. The closer we get to the crossover of campaigns, the more accurate these tend to be.
After a series of previous concept kits, the finalised design appears to be getting out. Released by Footy Headlines, the royal blue home top, white away shirt, and black third number all look to be nearly confirmed.
Images of the three goalkeeper shirts have also been posted with striped yellow, black, and green colourways. There is very little difference between those tops, as is standard, except the green shirt which matches with the third kit, and has a different badge as as well as a black underarm section too.
The home shirt is the main attraction, though. It takes a step back from the bold, heavily patterned shirts used for 2024/25 and also 2021/22 under Nike. Instead, there are some deeper and lighter shades of blue on the chest and sleeves in random areas, but it is largely a plain-blue jersey.
With a white collar and then navy trim around the back of the neck as well as dark blue hoops at the end of the sleeves, it is a minimalist design. The badge has a white outline as well, moving away from the monochrome and shiny effects of the past two seasons.
Also visible is the white and red underarm with red stripes on the shorts. If anything, it looks more like a training shirt than a matchday kit based on recent years.
The away kit is a creamy-white with thin red and green stripes down the centre. It is a clear nod to the 1974/45 away shirt, leaving this one to be worn just over 50 years on. In a continuation of dripping nostalgia into current kits, it also has green sponsor lettering and a green Nike badge.
Under the arms is a green and red stripe with the same red flash on the shorts. The socks include a thick green hoop and thinner red one at the top. The sleeve sponsor - currently Infinite Athlete - will also be in green. On the end of the sleeves is a green and red stripe to round things off.
Continuing the theme of throwback kits, the black third shirt has the most change. With a mostly black base, there are streaks of blue to separate the body, lower body, and arms. The badge is moved from the left side to the centre and uses a retro logo as well.
In a Total-90 inspired design, the kit is reminiscent of the away shirts between 2002 and 2007. These were created by Adidas and Umbro with a range of tweaked black styles.
The retro badge is the old one with the 'CFC' letters inside a circle and a lion sitting on top. That badge was changed in 2005. The club have been using new branding of 'CFC LDN' in the past 18 months which is closer to the previous emblem.
There is a notable addition on all of the mock shirts included here, as well. The Qatar Airways front-of-shirt sponsor has been added for design and aesthetic purposes. They are one of the reported companies interested in striking a deal with Chelsea, who have gone all of this season without a main sponsor. That is expected to change for next term, although it will depend which European competition they qualify for, if indeed Enzo Maresca's side secure a place at all.
The general reaction online has been positive. Chelsea have made some out-there decisions with kit design in the past few years which have not been as popular but the stripped-back nature certainly proves to be more in-keeping with fan demands.
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Chelsea flag prior the UEFA Champions League Quarter Final Leg One match between Chelsea FC and Real Madrid at Stamford Bridge. (Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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