While we don't wish to interrupt your 2026 FIFA World Cup viewing experience, it would be remiss of us not to mention that away from the grand international scene, Premier League clubs are already gearing up for the start of the 2026-27 season.
The start of the new English top-tier season has been delayed by a week to make room in what is already a crammed schedule, but nevertheless, a clutch of new kits has already been released.
Some kits have been unveiled over the offseason in dribs and drabs, while some of the league's heavyweight clubs even got ahead of the game by rolling out their latest jerseys at the tail end of last season.
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Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur are among the clubs who have already come flying out of the blocks in terms of kit releases, with plenty more to follow over the coming weeks.
As such, let's begin our annual sartorial task of rating, slating and most importantly ranking the various shirts that will be gracing Premier League pitches come August.
13. Newcastle United home (Adidas)
Newcastle's new home shirt should probably come with a warning. The Doppler-effect stripes are nauseating and the oversize bright blue stripes on the sleeves (a theme among Adidas kits this season, so be warned) don't sit well at all. There's only so much you can do with black-and-white stripes, and still it feels like the Toon have managed to screw things up here.
12. Chelsea home (Nike)
Released in early June, Chelsea's new home kit has failed to grow on us. The design is somehow both minimalist and clunky, with the yellow ornamentation and the oversize lion emblem "engraved" into the fabric making the whole thing feel disjointed. Not a classic, by any stretch.
11. Tottenham Hotspur home (Nike)
If you've seen one Spurs home kit in recent years, you've seen them all. Almost identical to every jersey released since Nike took the reins in 2017, the latest installment in the Premier League's blandest series is plain by design, supposedly symbolic of the club's desire for a fresh start -- which is understandable given it nearly got relegated twice. The sparse trim is navy (as per) and the diagonal hash marks appear to be a nod to the far-superior Hummel kits worn by Spurs in the mid-1980s.
10. Manchester City home (Puma)
City are kicking off the post-Pep Guardiola era with a quirky gradient design that fades from sky blue to white, the main color of the accompanying shorts and socks. The idea is to encompass every shade of blue the club has played in during its 140-year history, as well as the white kits worn in the early 20th century. We applaud the concept, but the execution just looks like the colors have run in the wash.
9. Arsenal home (Adidas)
Arsenal have already worn this jersey while lifting a Premier League trophy, having been rush-released in mid-May so it could be worn in the UEFA Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain. The shirt is a celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Gunners' big move to Emirates Stadium, though the "subtle visual references" are so subtle that we were hard-pressed to spot any of them.
8. Manchester United home (Adidas)
Manchester United have played their 2026-27 home kit design with a straight bat by releasing a crisp and clean design to mark the 50th anniversary of the club's victory in the 1977 FA Cup final. The polo collar and banded cuffs are a nice retro touch, though.
7. Tottenham Hotspur away (Nike)
A marked improvement on the new home shirt, Tottenham's 2026-27 away kit is built upon a dark navy base that has been overlaid with a contemporary graphic consisting of multicolored jagged bands in purple, pink and orange. The colors work well together, but it doesn't match up to the truly cosmic away kit from 2021-22.
6. Coventry City home (Hummel)
Back in the big time after a quarter of a century away, Coventry City return to the Premier League with a fresh new home shirt that abandons the traditional sky blue in favour of a daring blue and white striped format. The design is actually an homage to City's 1986-87 kit, also made by Hummel and worn while lifting the FA Cup, which featured dainty pinstripes on a two-tone white and blue background. It's sure to divide Coventry fans right down the middle but, judged on its own merits, it's a perfectly decent jersye.
5. Hull City home (Oxen)
Hull City have ditched the wild tiger print kit they wore while winning promotion back to the Premier League in favor of something much more old-school with a vintage design inspired by their 1978-79 season. Why that particular campaign was singled out is anybody's guess (the Tigers were relegated into the Third Division and then went two months without scoring before recovering to finish eighth) but the modern take on the kit is rather spiffing.
4. Liverpool home (Adidas)
Another retro kit done well, Liverpool's latest home shirt is of course a modern rework of one of the club's most cherished shirts -- the "Candy" kit of 1989-91, which coincided with the closing years of an incredible era of domestic and European dominance. The triangular flecks are instantly recognizable and still look good paired with modern accoutrements.
3. Aston Villa home (Adidas)
Somewhat unusually, Villa have plumped for an overtly retro design which is evocative of their long and vaunted history without feeling tied to any particular era. The entire jersey consists of just two colors -- the quintessential claret and blue -- but they've pulled it off with a certain amount of elegance. It might also be the first time we've seen a faux collar placket applied to a football shirt.
2. Leeds United away (Adidas)
Leeds' new away kit starts with a wonderfully lustrous shade of deep yellow that has then been overlaid with an intricate "Yorkshire rose" pattern reminiscent of flocked wallpaper. The trefoil logo and retro club crest are the perfect additions in terms of insignia, and the black trim ties it all together. Something tells us this is going to sell well at Elland Road.
1. Sunderland away (Hummel)
Sure to be one of the most esoteric kits on display in the Premier League this season. Sunderland have laid on a full-blown Elvis Presley tribute act after their fans adopted "Can't Help Falling in Love" as their prematch anthem at the Stadium of Light. Specifically, the pink and black jersey is an homage to the iconic rockabilly suit worn by The King during a 1954 appearance on the "Louisiana Hayride" TV show. It's an absolute peach, mama.