Counting Stars

It was recently decreed that prior to every MLS season starting next year, each club will unveil at least one new uniform top during Jersey Week. My first reaction to this was cynical; it sounded like a money-grab. Even with 3 kits per team, this means the average jersey life would be only 3 years. Then I thought to myself, “Self, did you just say ‘money-grab’? We’re lucky to live in a time in which this notion would even be economically viable. If it makes MLS money and doesn’t cheapen the product, all’s good.” Jersey sponsorships don’t often last more than 5 years, so I decided that maybe this wasn’t even such a big change. It will certainly inspire creativity amongst talented soccerphiles, which is not a bad thing. In the trust that if a club did happen to stumble upon an iconic kit that they would be allowed to keep it, I saw this Jersey Week in a more positive light. After taking in a few of the new kits this week, I’m even more in favor of it.

I do, however, have two simple hopes for MLS jerseys in the near future. To explain them, I first need to distinguish between the two styles of official MLS jerseys for sale. One is called “Authentic”, and the other is what I’ll refer to as “Standard”. (Previously known as “Replica” jerseys, in 2013 the delineation on mlsgear.com is now “Authentic soccer jersey” and “soccer jersey”). I apologize if this is insulting your soccer shopping intelligence, but this distinction is crucial to my argument– please bear with me.

 

Authentic jerseys are the top-of-the-line model, featuring contours and materials identical to the field-worn kits. With Standard jerseys, all the essential elements of the kit are there– the jersey sponsor (if it exists), MLS and Adidas logos and the team’s crest. Standard jerseys run for $84.99, and Authentic jerseys are $35 more at $119.99. For example, here are the Houston Dynamo’s home jerseys for 2013 (pre-order prices from mlsgear.com displayed):

 

AUTHENTIC ($119.99)

STANDARD ($84.99)

If you’re like me, seeing nearly-but-not identical pictures of two items like the ones above invokes an involuntary Photo Hunt reaction. Above, you’ll see the Texas flag on the Authentic jersey, while it’s not on the Standard. You’ll also see that the Standard is missing 3 more items: The US flag, a white strip on the left shoulder that reads “FOREVER ORANGE” and two stars above the Dynamo crest.

 

To be clear: I have no problem whatsoever with different tiers of jerseys. The market has spoken over the last 5 or so years and both products seem to have their niche. But two items on the Authentic jerseys give me taco neck, and here’s what I would like to see:

1. Add the Stars to the Standard Jersey

Championship seasons create dear memories. Soccer’s time-honored tradition of adding a star near (or to) the club’s crest after each championship is an elegant way for players, club staff and supporters to pay homage to those magical years. Unfortunately, currently not all supporters in MLS get to enjoy this tradition; stars are only added to the Authentic jerseys.

It makes perfect sense that certain features only be available on the Authentic jersey. After all, it’s a premium product and should offer more for its audience. However, keeping the stars off the Standard jerseys is counter to the spirit of economic equality in club culture. Additionally, the lack of stars on the Standard jersey displays a lack of consistency in the presentation of a critical club image – its crest.

 

   2.  Drop the National Flags on the Authentic Jerseys

I respect all nations’ flags. But they don’t belong everywhere, and for the life of me I can’t come up with one good reason why national flags belong on a club kits. Here are three reasons why they don’t:

• From a style perspective, a national flag strikes me as a feature that takes away from other, more creative jersey features.  Said differently, clutter.  It also acts as a required item that inevitably reduces space options for kit designers. 
• It needlessly introduces nationalism and patriotism into a stateless world. A country’s colors stir up intense emotion and imagery which I believe should be reserved for national team matches. City or State imagery has the power to work exceptionally well on club kits, if used thoughtfully.  I was impressed by the Colorado-flag themed kit from The Rapids, and it reminded me of the wildly popular redesign of the Columbus Blue Jackets' main sweater from 2008-present.
• They force proud citizens of many non-North American countries to wear the national colors of their employer’s city. Read that again. I wonder how Jay DeMerit feels when he looks over at that Canadian flag each week. I wonder how DeRo feels about wearing his United States flag. I’m sure each of these pros and others take it all in stride, but this to me is an unnecessary thing to ask of them. I enjoyed working in Germany for nine months, and I love the German people, but if I had to wear the German flag on my jacket each day to work it would have felt forced and awkward.  This also raises the question: Will Chivas USA petition to wear the Mexican flag this year?

What do you think?  Should all MLS gear of clubs with MLS Cups display their stars?  Do we need United States and Canadian flags on our kits?