Nike marks Arsenal FC’s 125th anniversary year by launching the club’s home shirt for the 2011-12 season. The celebratory design combines the graphic of the first club crest with the current version in a bold white print and carries the anniversary dates of 1886 and 2011 on the heart of the shirt. Underneath the celebratory crest sits the word ‘FORWARD’ as a tribute to the club’s first motto.
While the history and tradition of the club is present in the shirt design, the new home kit is made from Nike’s ground-breaking recycled polyester—which for the first time includes both the shirt and shorts (each complete kit is made up of up to thirteen reclaimed plastic water bottles). This new manufacturing process reduces energy consumption by up to 30% compared to manufacturing traditional polyester and saves nearly 100 million plastic water bottles from being dumped at landfill sites.
The classic design is inspired by the 1970’s strips and boasts a clean, refined look with a block red body and white sleeves with red speed stripe detail. The shorts are white with a red speed stripe and the white socks carry the club’s founding year 1886 on the back of the fabric.
On the back of the shirt below the neck reads ‘Arsenal’, while inside the front, on the back of the crest, is a graphic that reads ‘Victoria Concordia Crescit’, (‘Victory Through Harmony’), Arsenal’s Latin motto, which was previously featured on earlier versions of their club crest between 1949 and 2002.
The light weight kits (13% lighter than previous versions) actively regulate the players’ body temperatures on the pitch to keep them dry and cool at all times through use of Nike Dri-FIT technology. This technology draws sweat away from the player’s body through the material where it can evaporate.
Temperature regulation is helped by ventilation zones, consisting of hundreds of tiny laser cut holes from the under arms to the waistband, allowing air to circulate to keep players dry, cool and comfortable. For the first time the club crest on the front of the shirt is heat transferred, making it even lighter and crucially allowing this area to now be ventilated as well.
The shirt has a new aerodynamic fit this season, now slimmer and more athletic, providing 17% more stretch than the Arsenal shirt of two years ago. While a bonded hem offers a streamlined look that reduces irritation caused by chafing.
To compliment the new match day kit Nike has launched a unique Arsenal line of training and lifestyle clothing for both players and fans to wear on and off the pitch.