Rating the best and worst kits of the 2018 World Cup

The World Cup offers an opportunity to showcase new jerseys and kit styles for a global audience. Who will be the best and worst dressed teams in Russia?

Every four years, the 32 national teams that make it to the World Cup have big decisions to make. Some countries have iconic looks that need the barest of tweaks to their appearance. Other countries choose to take the approach of shifting their look with the times.

Sometimes the decision to switch things up will backfire. And sometimes it results in an instant classic that will be remembered for years to come. It must also be noted that timeless looks aren’t always necessarily well-done efforts.

So which teams among the field in Russia this summer have made the best and worst sartorial decisions?

Nigeria show the world how it’s done

Hands down, nobody went as bold as the Nigerians for their choice of attire at this World Cup. The Super Eagles are coming to Russia with a surprisingly effective jersey in bold chevron patterns of green and black and white. Paired with simple white shorts and lime-green socks, the effect is unique and distinctive. The Nigerians make it work.

This Nigeria kit will be remembered for years to come. It could become the basis for a longtime look for the Super Eagles, especially if they do well in Russia. Other countries have some well-conceived kits, but none are as original or well-matched as the home kits Nigeria will wear throughout the tournament.

That said, let’s rank the best of the other 31 team kits in a couple of different categories.

The best retro looks

1. Germany
2. Belgium
3. Croatia
4. Morocco
5. Sweden

Germany are pulling off an impressive troll job as the defending champions. Both their home and away kits resemble the iconic look of the 1990 West German team that defeated Diego Maradona and Argentina at the World Cup in Italy. They take the top spot on this list for going all-out with the throwback look in their title defense. These kits are close enough to the 1990 versions, with similar patterning and coloration. But there are also discernible differences, such as the home kit patterned in grayscale instead of in the flag colors.

Belgium’s home kit is subtly impressive. As the gem of the line, it mimics and modernizes the argyle-inspired design of Belgium’s Euro 1984 kits. The away kit, though, veered from that trope. It’s a perfectly acceptable rendition of the classic yellow look, but it feels like an opportunity lost. Had they fully embraced the argyle look, the Belgians might have overtaken the Germans for the best overall look.

Croatia once again don their classic red-and-white checkerboard pattern. But they put a spin on the classic look for the 2018 World Cup. The squares are larger, and the offset numbering on the front positions perfectly as a result. The away kit plays on the checkerboard pattern as well, in a midnight-blue-and-black pattern. It makes the pattern less distinctive as a result, but it will be interesting to see how they actually appear on the pitch.

Morocco revived and updated a look similar to the one they wore in the 1970 World Cup. In the process, the Moroccans veered from more recent kit styles worn at World Cups in the 1990s. Sweden’s 2018 kits get a subtle patterning that works especially well on the away kit.

The classics

1. Peru
2. Brazil
3. England
4. Denmark
5. Argentina
6. Portugal

Peru are on this list mainly for bringing back an iconic South American kit to the World Cup for the first time in 36 years. Their sash is a legendary look redolent of South American club jerseys. The accents of gold on the kit were especially tasteful, a well-deserved adornment after getting back to the World Cup after so many missed chances.

Brazil would be just as deserving of the top spot as Peru, but the novelty of the Peruvians earned them the top spot. The selecao apparently matched their home jersey to the shade of yellow used for the jerseys of the 1970 World Cup champion squad. It’s a bold statement as the Brazilians look for redemption after the way they collapsed in the semifinals four years ago on home soil.

England are also wearing a timeless look. The traditional white jersey with the three lions on the crest had no need for further adjustment. And the away kit hearkens back to the look of the 1966 World Cup champion team. The embrace of the traditional in both looks earned England a top-three spot ahead of teams like Denmark’s Hummel chevrons. Argentina and Portugal dueled for the fifth spot, as both had strong timeless home looks but switched up the away kits.

The worst

1. see below
2. Russia
3. Japan
4. Panama
5. France
6. Senegal

As the hosts, Russia had the opportunity to improve upon a solid effort with their 2014 World Cup kit. Instead, they took a complete 180 and offered up a lackadaisical effort with this year’s kits. The home kit veered from the maroon of the 2014 kits to a more red color that looks perfectly ordinary, the sort of kit you could find on any number of rec-league teams on a Sunday afternoon. The away kit tried to be glamorous and landed on boring.

Japan tried to get too cute with the home jersey and went too bland with their away effort. The dappled effort on the home kit contrasted by the solid sleeves doesn’t have the same effect as Nigeria’s more distinctive patterning. The away kit offers up a bland white motif. Ultimately both kits will be relegated to the list of looks to forget.

Panama certainly made their attire memorable for the country’s first-ever World Cup appearance. But the Panama kits are memorable for all the wrong reasons. Los Canaleros are going to take to the pitch in Russia rocking jerseys with Nehru collars. It is a distinctive look, but one that looks entirely out of place on the pitch. The New Balance effort will be remembered as the oddest look of the 2018 World Cup.

France and Senegal round out this quintet. The French side might be among the top contenders to hoist the World Cup, but their look is honestly pedestrian. The dappled away jersey is far more interesting than the home kit, and even that is more mottled than timeless. For Senegal, the effort to go with the lion pattern on the front of both kits backfired due to its subtlety.

Next: The best player on every team at the 2018 World Cup

The worst of the worst

1. Australia

Australia went halfway bold and halfway conservative. The main kit offers an odd striped pattern on the sleeves of the jersey that is contrasted by plain yellow across the rest of the kit. It was as though they started to go bold and then fell asleep on the job. Unlike Nigeria’s effort, Australia’s comes off as downright lackadaisical.

The away kit looks more like something Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios would wear than something befitting the Socceroos. The contrast of greens and the thin band of the diagonal stripe yielded a mottled effort. It is something you’d expect to see on a fan in the stands as a branded polo shirt rather than on the pitch. The only thing missing is the collar.