Like many other football fans around the world, I can spend hours upon hours browsing aimlessly through Classic Football Shirt websites. There’s something about looking at an old kit from the early 2000’s that can just take me back to a specific match, goal or moment in life which may have been long forgotten. Meanwhile, I enjoy looking through the wild designs that have somehow made it to production, the bold colours and pieces from around the globe. Although admittedly my personal collection of kits from the past doesn’t extend past my own club and holiday souvenirs, I am fully in support of the trend towards using “retro” shirts as a fashionable item, and for allowing me to spend far too much time in my own little world reminiscing on historic football games, long may the businesses continue.

So to celebrate some of my favourite football shirts that I have come across over the years, I’ve decided to put together my top 5 from around the leagues, this time, looking into Germany’s top-flight, the Bundesliga. Admittedly, this is personal opinions and not all tastes are the same, however I believe these are widely recognised as some of the greatest shirts from the Bundesliga. Additionally, as will become clear looking through these, I have a personal fondness towards a collared shirt, fairly simple designs and more ‘traditional’ colours to the individual club.

Enjoy.

Eintracht Braunschweig 1973 (H)

Kicking us off on this list, is a side currently playing in the 2. Bundesliga, Eintracht Braunschweig, and their historic 1973 home kit. The black and white picture does this one no favours, as it is a vibrant yellow shirt with blue elements, and is a proper beauty. This one makes the list, as it is a shirt I discovered upon beginning my research for this post, and the history of it just really intrigued me. This shirt was the first Bundesliga kit to have a shirt sponsor, and a memorable one in the form of Jägermeister, the German liquor that will liven up any party. Now, we are accustomed to the removal of alcohol sponsors from many shirts, being replaced by gambling and loan companies (let’s save that discussion for another day), but this is no Carlsberg or Newcastle Brown Ale, this is Jägermeister. I reckon even Jamie Vardy would struggle putting in a 90 minute shift after some of that stuff and so seeing your role-model athletes promoting it is quite amusing.

So, this is where we’re starting, and honestly it’s kicked us off with a bomb (pun intended). It’s a proper 70s vibe shirt, and I think it should make a comeback for the club.

Bayern Munich 2013-2014 (H)

Bayern had to be on the list if we are to talk about the Bundesliga, as they run the show and have done for so long that it is necessary. I’ve gone for this 2013-2014 home shirt, as it has memorable significance for me watching Bayern in this formidable campaign.

After winning the Champions League the previous season, this season saw the arrival of Mr. Pep Guardiola at the Allianz, and things got off to a flier, as they stormed the league, winning by a 19 point margin of 2nd place, they won the DFB-Pokal, UEFA Super Cup and the Club World Cup. Although, they couldn’t retain the Champions League, they made the semi’s and certainly were showing some real power in Europe. I was obsessed with watching this side almost weekly, as I was opening my eyes to the Bundesliga, and watching the likes of Neuer, Lahm, Boateng, Ribery, Thiago, Robben, Kroos, Schweinsteiger, Mandžukić and Müller playing some of their best stuff under Guardiola was fantastic. They put on a real show in most matches and I thoroughly enjoyed this season of Bayern and became almost my full introduction to the German top-flight, after the sides had dominated in Europe the previous season (even if they knocked my side out of Europe).

The shirt itself is a classic, and has some features that I appreciate in football shirts. Firstly, the adidas production brings with it, the 3 stripe on the sleeves which makes any shirt look much more classy and quality in my opinion. Additionally, I like the use of the T-Mobile sponsor, as they’ve managed to make it prominent yet subtle and not one of those horrendous obnoxious ‘look at me’ shirt ruining sponsors. Good work on the pitch, and looking good whilst doing it. Additionally, it was worn in the Champions League final in 2013 I believe, so technically it brought even more success.

Borussia Monchengladbach 1997-1998 (A)

I had to include a Borussia Monchengladbach shirt in my list, purely as they have my favourite football crest in the entire sport that I have seen thus far. The crest has been my badge of choice on Ultimate Team always and I think the design and style is bold, simple and a great design. Therefore, I searched through some of their back catalogue of shirts to find one for the list, and came across this gem. It is a perfect football shirt for me in many ways, has the collar, has the subtle sleeve design and has traditional away colours of the side. The tech company sponsor speaks to the late 90s style, and isn’t overpowering on the shirt.

Overall, it’s a real gem, not too bold and out there, but does the business and made the side look cool as fuck as they just avoided relegation in this campaign on the very last match of the season.

Borussia Dortmund 2020-2021 (H)

Okay, it was only a matter of time before we had to talk about Borussia Dortmund, and that’s exactly what I will be doing in my last 2 picks. This is a club who have build huge identities out of just their kits, their stadium, their fans and also on their football. Their kits are an almost guaranteed classic each and every season, which is why picking one has been so challenging. However, after watching the recent match against Bayern, this side looked so good wearing their current home shirt, I had to put this one on the list as almost a symbol of all the great shirts that have preceded this one.

The bold yellow is their trademark and despite some sides trying this and ending up with absolute eye-sore’s of shirts, Dortmund do it with style, and this season’s with the lightning style black cutting through it links perfectly with some of the electric football being played on the pitch. There’s a reason why non-Dortmund fans clamour for the new shirt each season, and given their football style this is only going to continue. It’s a great shirt for a quality footballing side, and is on the list to celebrate each and every one of it’s predecessors.

Borussia Dortmund 2019 (Special)

Last on this list is another Dortmund beauty, and one that had football shirt obsessive’s and hipster’s collectively drooling at the mouth and throwing their wallets at Puma. This 2019 Blackout limited edition shirt was released in celebration of the clubs’ 110 year existence, and was worn on a single game against Fortuna Düsseldorf in which Dortmund eased a comfortable 5-0 victory. This release sold out in minutes and crashed the clubs’ website at one point due to the demand.

I wouldn’t normally include a limited release, as these are often a PR stunt used to take even more money away from fans, who often lose out due to scalpers buying and flogging them for 10x the original price, however this one does contain some of the history of the club and I believe it was released with good intentions. Additionally, it’s a bloody beauty which had fans around the World talking, and still to this day many want to own this gem of a shirt. It will go down as one of the nicest from the Bundesliga, and possibly even one of the Worlds’ finest releases. Now, if only I can find one to buy somewhere.