The Tigers unveiled the primary shirt to be worn in the club’s 120th year on Saturday, just a few hours before a behind-closed-doors friendly against Turkish side Kasımpaşa. Let’s take a good look…

OVERVIEW

As befits a key anniversary, Kappa (Türkiye) have given us a traditionally styled shirt, with simple amber and black stripes on the Italian firm’s 2024 Pro Kombat chassis. Whereas the inaugural Kappa home shirt featured stripes only on the shirtfront (and often only three amber stripes were seen on the small sizes worn by players), slightly thinner stripes are present on both the Raglan sleeves and the back panel (hurray!).

The black wrap-over V neck insert is squared off where it meets the amber central stripe, and is ribbed like the matching sleeve cuffs. As is Kappa’s wont, the chest ‘Omini’ logo in white is high up, at collarbone level, and brings the club crest along with it (this was the case on the retro trackie jackets too). White sleeve ‘Ominis’ are at the same level.

Subtle texturing comes from a parquet/herringbone pattern that is embossed into the fabric, providing a 3D effect that is similar to but more discreet than the raised knit on Nike Dri-FIT ADV shirts (such as the Netherland Euro 2024 home shirts). Only seen at close range, this pattern has a ‘premium’ feel to it,

Another ‘premium’ feel comes from the use of sewn-on, woven patches for the club crest. The club and Kappa Türkiye have listened to and acted upon feedback and the heat-applied silicone patches that had some bonding issues last year are not present on new replica garments, although such appliques that minimise garment weight will still be used on player-spec items.

Player-spec shirts will again differ from replicas, to the delight of match-worn collectors. The material and fit are different, fans in the stands don’t need much hyper-stretchy elastane in their shirts, nor to have their body shape highlighted by ‘skin-fit’ items, and though fans prefer the club crest to be woven*, that’s just added weight and a potential source of irritation for a player.

*I’ve seen some people use the term ’embroidery’ when referring to the club crests on these new shirts, but embroidery is raised threads stitched onto a fabric, which often means a lack of fine detail (think 2013/14 adidas shirts, where the tiger looked a bit bog-eyed). These crests are woven, so they’re flat and smooth and replicate tiger-head detail, and then sewn on.

AESTHETIC ASSESSMENT

From a purely aesthetical standpoint, (don’t come at me with build quality complaints, that’s on the laterbase), I liked the 2023/24 City ‘home’ a lot. It looked great.

Sure, I’d have liked more amber stripes on the front, and some on the back, but if you did that you can’t have an all-amber change kit, and I’m ideologically sold on a change kit that reverses the colour order of the primary kit so that you’re still in your club colours while neatly side-stepping colour clash concerns. Plus, we couldn’t have had amber numbers, and those were smoov. But, I digress.

I like the 2024/25 City home EVEN MORE!

The first job of any Hull City primary shirt is to be instantaneously recognisable as a Hull City shirt. This screams Hull City AFC. The mark is hit. A primary kit for a key anniversary year also comes with some historical baggage, it has to be respectful to and reflective of 120 years of visual heritage. So it must be stripes, and you can’t go experimental or abstract. I defy you to say this new shirt doesn’t meet those requirements too.

Having the stripes be just a touch thinner than last time round means you get five vertical amber bands, which makes for a much brighter kit overall, and I’m a big believer in maximising the impact of amber (and yes, I recognise we sacrificed that last year to have an amber change kit). That’s why having the centre-stripe be amber works, even if it was black on the shirts used in the first few years of the club’s existence, because it gives you two forward-facing amber stripes on the sleeves, again brightening the kit as a whole. The amber was slightly darkened in 2023, using a Pantone described as ‘Apricot’, but on the 2024 shirts a more familiar tone of amber is used.

Some have expressed mild displeasure that the Kappa ‘Omini’ and club crest are placed very high, and the sponsor is placed relatively low. It’s a Kappa styling to have the maker and club marks fairly high, presumably because it ‘gets the badge in’ on closely framed player interviews, but you might be surprised to know that the Kappa mark and crest are in essentially the same place as on last season’s shirt, only the shoulder seams are lower on this new shirt on account of it having full Raglan** sleeves, so they look higher than before because there is less clearance between the appliques and seams in comparison. The first batch of player shirts had sponsors applied by the kitman, and they’re placed a little lower than will feature on retailed replicas.

** Raglan sleeves follow the natural shape of the body, being joined diagonally from the neckline to the underarm, rather than across the shoulder. This sleeve style offers more freedom of movement than a set-in sleeve shirt and the fabric doesn’t bunch up around the shoulders.

Last year’s shirts had no texture beyond the ventilation pores, so the the 3D pattern of embossed Parquet/herringbone lines is a real enhancement, it looks classy. Last year’s shirt also had overlock stitching on connecting the body panels and sleeves, but you couldn’t see black stitching on a black sleeve, whereas this time you can see the black stitching when it cuts across amber stripes. I can’t explain why I like this, I just do, it’s the polyester equivalent of exposed steel beams in modern architecture.

The explicit acknowledgement of the club’s 120th anniversary comes from a heat applied transfer on the back of the shirt, with 120 in white numerals overlaid by cursive ‘years’ text.

Yep, this is a lovely, lovely primary kit. Aesthetically, I don’t know what more you’re asking for unless you’re wilfully ignoring what’s needed in an anniversary year. I’d have loved a polo collar, and I’m hoping we’ll see one elsewhere in the kitset, but a collar craving still isn’t enough to mark this down.

There seems to have been a conscious effort made to address the aesthetic criticisms of the first Kappa home shirt: More stripes, more amber, and no plain back. Those changes have created what is, I believe, a better shirt than the one it replaces. Bravo Hull City and Kappa Türkiye, BRAVO!

Most of the criticism last year wasn’t about aesthetics, however, so let’s look at what else has changed…

BUILD QUALITY AND FIT

More important than aesthetic considerations for some is how these shirts compare in terms of build quality and fit to last year’s, which saw some complaints about crests that fell off after one wash and the trickiness of converting Kappa’s less than generous sizing to fit Hullensian frames.

The decision to use sewn-on, woven crest patches will be popular, there should be no crest detachments this time round. Kappa ‘Ominis’ are still heat applied, but seem to be thicker and better bonded than in 2023.

This time round, all replicas are ‘regular’ fit, so you should find there is no need to go up a size (or two) like last year, good news for anyone psychologically crushed by the thought of needing an XXL or, gasp, XXXL.

There’s a little more give in the material compared to last season, and overall these shirts feel more structured and of a higher quality. The ribbed neckline and sleeve cuffs feel substantial and, I’ll use that word again, premium. The club have had a full year to work with Kappa Türkiye to iron out any problems, and that increased understanding and cooperation can be seen in these garments.

This is a really good 120th anniversary primary shirt, and I’m looking forward to purchasing one, and to see the rest of the kitset and training/leisurewear range.

OTHER THOUGHTS AND CONSIDERATIONS.

City are retaining the sock design used in 2023/24, and that’s all good, I’m a fan of the woven HULL CITY lettering. I don’t know if those shorts worn against Kasımpaşa are part of the 2024/25 kit, however.

There will be no long-sleeve shirts available this season. The popularity of base-layers continues to make long-sleevers an endangered species.

There will be no ‘pro version’ shirts on retail sale in 2024/25. Last season, Tiger Leisure sold player-spec shirts that had the retail shirt QR codes added above the hem. Some of these were used by players late in the season when the kit-room stock of small shirts ran out.

Collectors of match-worn shirts with completist tendencies will be happy that City’s sleeve and back-of-shirt advertising deals will be in place for the start of the season, lest they feel the need to buy multiple shirts as new deals are struck mid-campaign.

I’d be totally fine with sizeable Kappa ‘Omini’ banding down the sleeves of the change and third shirts. Not having it on the primary makes sense when you’re going for a traditional look in an anniversary year, but the design shackles are off for change kits. It’d be a waste of the association with Kappa if we don’t get something with big, chavvy, spitting off the balcony at the top of Prinny Quay in the 90s vibes massive branding at some point.

Please, please give us a polo-collar soon!

Those who think there is no difference between this shirt and the last should follow this link…

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