Strip Club–Euro 2012 Kit Tournament (Group D)
In an ambitious effort to get involved with the upcoming Euros, I followed the draw, game by game, to determine which kit would win Euro 2012 based on my tastes. These posts are an extension of my Strip Club posts and the epic Kit Tournament done by Avoiding the Drop for the 2010 World Cup.
Special thanks to Mao Football, whose post got this all kicked off for me. Also to TheScore.ie , who put together a slide show of each jersey. Finally, 7football created a graphic representation of each strip complete with shirt, shorts and socks. Truly phenomenal stuff.
Here we go.
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France
England
Sweden
Ukraine
France v England
A couple of years ago, Nike got a hold of the France kit and did a major overhaul, going with a darker blue for the home kit and using a creamy white for the away kit with some sort of black trim. The original home kit was epic. This version? Not so much. There are subtle alternating horizontal strips of a bluish black hue but the collar sinks it. The traditional royal blue sticking out and a design straight out of a J Crew catalog from the early 90’s. As for the English, their away kit is confusing. The black shirt could be an attempt to be menacing, like “we’re the Three Lions and we’re going to rip out your throat after over a hundred of years of disappointment”, but the light blue collar, possibly echoing the lions on the badge, gives it real clearance rack potential. A tedious draw.
Ukraine v Sweden
The co-hosts home kit is relatively simple and stays out of the way. Looking at the rest of the group, this is probably the way to go. Sweden’s away kit is almost too simple and screams lack of imagination. The navy blue and the yellow sash, which I love in this case, is a possible River Plate, US 1950 shout out, but felt they could have done more. Edge to the hosts as they get off to a good start.
Sweden v England
The Swedes home kit doesn’t vary too much from ones before it, going with the yellow shirt and narrow blue pinstripes. The collar doesn’t work for me but gets the three points over England’s away strip.
Ukraine v France
This will be an interesting kit choice for the counties and TV broadcasters. Is it the yellow home strip of Ukraine against the white of France or the blue away Ukrainian strip against the white or the yellow against the deeper blue French kit? My guess is that it will be third of these options and co-hosts will book themselves a spot in the knockout phase with a victory.
England v Ukraine
England’s new home kit is elegant. White with a minimal red accent, red manufacturer logo and red crest. So much better than the away version. Ukraine’s away kit is a mirror of the home, with a nice shade of royal blue getting the job done. This is tough one, but as Rooney will be back, I’ll give the edge to the English.
Sweden v France
Again there are several possibilities of which kit each team will wear. My guess is that both teams will run out in their traditional colors, which may mean that the white away kit of France may not make an appearance in the tournament. Both collars distract me but the rest of the Sweden shirt gives them the edge.
Standings
| Ukraine | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Sweden | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| England | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| France | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
Is it bad that I don’t like any of them?
no. this group was pretty awful.
1 point for France?
HOW DARE YOU SIR!
The white kit for France is the class of this group. They win on the strength of the fact that it makes even Ribery look pretty.
That white France kit is the class of the entire tournament.
It even makes Ribery look pretty.
I like the England kits (even with the collars) and the white France. The rest look like a J Crew catalog threw up. I agree with Mike – may need to throw them out.