Where are my shorts?! …Oh, I’m wearing them
Asparagus green! Sunflower orange! White pyjamas! We kick around some of the more unusual jerseys in this World Cup
By Cheryl Lim
June 20, 2010
FASHION has come a long way in the world of football. And there’s no better time for it to wield its influence on the most popular sport in the world than during the World Cup.
Also, it’d be easier on the eyes of the three billion fans worldwide if players wore outfits that matched their sporting skills.
In the past, the jerseys sported during the World Cup games were mostly in primary or neutral hues.
Think of the canary yellow and leaf green of the Brazilian team, the fire-engine red and yellow for Spain and the Atlantic blue and white of the French.
But these days, some teams attempt to differentiate themselves from the rest with jerseys that go off the beaten track.
The results have varied from being weird to wonderful to downright wrenching.
Besides David Beckham’s metrosexual fashion disasters (the cornrows so did not work), there are other fashion moves on the pitch that aren’t celebrated goals.
Our fashion police single out the most unusual uniforms this World Cup in South Africa – and then some.
ALGERIA
Rather than adopt the safer shade of medium-tone leaf green used by Cameroon for their home jersey, the Algerians have chosen a shade of pastel green – a favourite hue of many women.
The result: The North African team stand out from their competitors, never mind that the colour of the pitch is just a few Pantone shades away.
Local fashion stylist Vik Lim isn’t sure about the hue – ‘unless the intention is to blend in with the field to confuse the referee’s judgement during the game’.
The New Paper’s fashion columnist Yeoh Wee Teck added with much amusement: ‘They look very healthy, like a bunch of Jolly Green Giants or a can of asparagus.’
Ms Afton Chan, designer of local women and menswear label Reckless Ericka agreed, saying: ‘Looks like peppermint gone wrong.’
IVORY COAST
Their home jersey is as orange as a burst of sunflowers. It’s made by German sportswear brand Puma.
And it’s tight, tight, tight – hugging the bodies of the West African nation’s players snugly and showing every rippling muscle.
Matching orange socks complete the orange top-and-bottom ensemble.
PEANUTS: Slovenia’s Robert Koren.
Ms Chan likes it too, calling the orange jersey ‘bright’ and ‘eye-catching’, but added that her only gripe is that ‘the elephant graphic on the left shoulder patch is a tad hard to see’.
Mr Yeoh said: ‘I think it’s very cheerful, but the tees are tight, so any hint of a tummy and it’s uncle-ville for you.’
But Ivory Coast prove that they can get their jerseys very wrong too.
The team also has a brown and light blue jersey which boasts an ombre effect – a dye technique that involves an article being dipped into a pool of contrasting-colour dye, resulting in a light-to-dark gradation effect.
Unfortunately, the effect also gives the illusion that its players are running around bottomless.
The jersey was worn for an international friendly match against Paraguay in evian-les-Bains, France, on May 30 in preparation for the World Cup. But it is so strange it deserves a spot here.
Mr Lim said: ‘It’s such a fashionable approach (to the jersey). The problem is in the choice of colours. Baby blue with brown gives the jersey a ‘dirty’ effect.’
He added: ‘It doesn’t help that the jersey is teamed with brown shorts and worn against brown skin. Is this supposed to give the players a nude look?’
Celebrity stylist Karen Ng said: ‘I like the colour combination and the use of colour gradation. Kudos to them for the extra bit of creativity.’
But all that creativity didn’t win Mr Yeoh over. ‘It looks like a costume worn by an extra from Glee. And not the cool kid.’
SLOVENIA
This Eastern European country is not known for its fashion credentials, but its contribution to the World Cup house of style is commendable.
All the critics gave the team’s dark green away jersey nods of approval.
Mr Yeoh thinks it is ‘quite attractive’ and may be the only one of the lot that he would wear.
Mr Lim said: ‘I love the zig-zag print. It not only adds a graphic element to the top, it is a somewhat unexpected choice of pattern for football jerseys.’
Ms Ng is charmed by the ‘gorgeous rich green’ and loves the ‘eye-catching W-graphic detail in neon green’.
Ms Chan concluded: ‘The zig-zag actually represents Slovenia’s Triglav mountain (the country’s most iconic symbol), so it’s nice to see that they’ve infused it into the jersey design.’
Still, she’s amused that it also resembles the shirt of Peanuts character Charlie Brown.
NORTH KOREA
Sure, the plain and austere white home jersey is slightly cheerier than North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il’s preferred uniform, the boxy khaki or grey jacket top with matching pants.
But it scores the same marks on the fashion barometer – a big fat zero.
Why are you playing in your pyjamas, North Korea?
Although the team sticks to safe colours, the loose cut and yawn-inducing design are a thumbs down.
‘With thin streamlined red details running through the basic white kit, it is very straightforward, simple, safe and a tad mundane,’ said Ms Chan.
Mr Lim added: ‘The oversized raglan-cut V-neck jersey isn’t flattering for the wearer. The cut only makes them look unkempt and sloppy.’
‘The design is so lacklustre and boring that it looks like hand-me-downs from past matches,’ Mr Lim quipped.
This is already an improved version of the home jersey North Korea had originally intended to wear – before the North Korea football association signed a million-dollar four-year deal with Italian sportswear label Legea.
Can you imagine the fashion-challenged fellas turning up in an ugly short-sleeved white T-shirt with the national flag emblazoned across the chest?
‘As a people, we don’t like flashy designs,’ justified North Korean football association assistant general secretary Ri Kang Hong.
You don’t say.
The NewPaper