PORTUGAL 2012 NATIONAL TEAM HOME KIT

Portugal’s new home kit has been augmented with symbols from their glorious seafaring history.

The new Portugal home kit is a classic design, featuring an all red body with an elegant green crew neck collar.

On the sleeves are green crosses formed from thin stripes, with the horizontal lines extending around the entire cuff, to represent the revered Portuguese national symbol, which was emblazoned on the sails of the ships Portugal’s explorers navigated around the world.

Inside the neck is an Armillary Sphere, an astronomical and navigation instrument, which these explorers used to discover the world. It has been a national symbol for over 500 years, featuring in architecture, and most famously as the background to the Portuguese shield on the national flag.

The new home shorts are red, while the new home socks, now with improved cushioning for greater comfort, are also red with a thin green stripe at the top and a small green cross on the back of each calf. 

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In line with Nike’s commitment to combining athletic performance with lower environmental impact, fabric for the new kit's shorts is made with 100% recycled polyester, while the shirt fabric is made with a minimum 96% recycled polyester. Each kit is made using an average of 13 recycled plastic bottles.

The kits are constructed using Nike Dri-FIT technology to wick moisture and are made out of 23 percent lighter fabric with 20 percent stronger knit structure than Nike’s previous kits.  The shirts also feature laser-cut ventilation holes to promote localized cooling, to help regulate player temperatures during a  match.

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POLAND 2012 NATIONAL TEAM HOME KIT

The new Poland kit was first revealed in December 2011 and it will take its place in the spotlight when Poland co-hosts football’s biggest European tournament this summer. The kit is inspired by the Polish flag – Poland’s most universal and respected national symbol.

The jersey represents the most iconic symbol of Poland depicted by the national flag in white and red. It will carry a nation in the most important year in Polish football history, so the jersey will be remembered for many years to come.

The shirt also features the traditional national crest – an Eagle, reflecting the pride and passion of Polish football.

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In line with Nike’s commitment to combining athletic performance with lower environmental impact, fabric for the new kit's shorts is made with 100% recycled polyester, while the shirt fabric is made with a minimum 96% recycled polyester. Each kit is made using an average of 13 recycled plastic bottles.

The kits are constructed using Nike Dri-FIT technology to wick moisture and are made out of 23 percent lighter fabric with 20 percent stronger knit structure than Nike’s previous kits.  The shirts also feature laser-cut ventilation holes to promote localized cooling, to help regulate player temperatures during a  match.

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THE NETHERLANDS 2012 NATIONAL TEAM HOME KIT

The Dutch are celebrated for their enlightened and attractive football, as well as their unconventional approach to design and art, which can appear chaotic and untamed, but is always functional with a distinctive purpose. 

The home shirt is in the traditional Dutch vibrant orange, but now has tonal diamond prints on both the left side of the torso and the right side of the bottom to create a sash effect to echo the design of their first ever kit from 1904.

Inside the neck is the graphic “Nieuwe Meesters” (New Masters) which pays homage to the name collectively given to the renowned Dutch artists of the 17th century, while also celebrating the current Dutch side, a hugely talented group of players who have the potential to make their own history.

The new home shorts are in traditional orange, while the new home socks, now with improved cushioning for greater comfort, movement and protection, are also in orange, giving the entire kit a strong, clean and unmistakably Dutch appearance. 

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In line with Nike’s commitment to combining athletic performance with lower environmental impact, fabric for the new kit's shorts is made with 100% recycled polyester, while the shirt fabric is made with a minimum 96% recycled polyester. Each kit is made using an average of 13 recycled plastic bottles.

The kits are constructed using Nike Dri-FIT technology to wick moisture and are made out of 23 percent lighter fabric with 20 percent stronger knit structure than Nike’s previous kits.  The shirts also feature laser-cut ventilation holes to promote localized cooling, to help regulate player temperatures during a  match.

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FRANCE 2012 NATIONAL TEAM HOME KIT

The new France home kit is a bold departure from the traditional blue and white design and has been inspired by the military uniforms.

The body of the shirt boasts a tonal print of the mariniere, an iconic French design consisting of thin stripes, alternatively in Meteor Blue, the color of the traditional French shirt, and then lighter Pacific Blue from the military uniforms.

The unique high collar of the shirt is decorated with gold piping, and again has been inspired by the collars of the military jackets.

On the cuff of both sleeves is a hexagon to represent France, and contains three tones of gold to echo the national flag the Tricolour.

Inside the back of the neck runs a thin red tape with the message ‘Nos differences nous unissent’ (Our differences unite us), which proudly celebrates the diversity of the French nation.  

The shorts are in Meteor Blue with a lighter Pacific Blue stripe along each side, while the socks, now with improved cushioning for greater comfort, are in Meteor blue featuring four tonal stripes. 

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In line with Nike’s commitment to combining athletic performance with lower environmental impact, fabric for the new kit's shorts is made with 100% recycled polyester, while the shirt fabric is made with a minimum 96% recycled polyester. Each kit is made using an average of 13 recycled plastic bottles.

The kits are constructed using Nike Dri-FIT technology to wick moisture and are made out of 23 percent lighter fabric with 20 percent stronger knit structure than Nike’s previous kits.  The shirts also feature laser-cut ventilation holes to promote localized cooling, to help regulate player temperatures during a  match.

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CROATIA 2012 NATIONAL TEAM HOME KIT

Croatia’s unique kits are an important and emotional symbol of their young country.

Featuring their famous red and white checks, the home shirt has a red crew neck collar with the body now featuring an even bigger and bolder red and white check. The sleeves contain smaller checks to create an overall more colourful design.

Inside the neck is the message “Uvijek Vjerni” which translates as ‘Always loyal”, to celebrate the loyalty and passion Croatians feel for their football side.

The new home shorts are white, while the new home socks, now with improved cushioning for greater comfort, also white with a subtle band of tonal checks. 

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In line with Nike’s commitment to combining athletic performance with lower environmental impact, fabric for the new kit's shorts is made with 100% recycled polyester, while the shirt fabric is made with a minimum 96% recycled polyester. Each kit is made using an average of 13 recycled plastic bottles.

The kits are constructed using Nike Dri-FIT technology to wick moisture and are made out of 23 percent lighter fabric with 20 percent stronger knit structure than Nike’s previous kits.  The shirts also feature laser-cut ventilation holes to promote localized cooling, to help regulate player temperatures during a  match.

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NIKE FOOTBALL UNVEILS ARSENAL HOME KIT FOR SEASON 2012/13

THE Arsenal home shirt for the 2012-13 season pays tribute to the North London club’s visionary past and bright future, inspired by 126 years of innovation and style.

Arsenal Football Club has long been the benchmark for innovation and change. It was Herbert Chapman – the club’s manager from 1925 to 1934 - who championed the use of floodlights, numbered shirts and white footballs in the modern game. And Nike, official kit supplier and leaders in design and innovation, has unveiled a home kit that pays tribute to club heritage whilst offering players and fans a modern and stylish new uniform.

The shirt boasts the traditional red block body with white sleeves but fans will find a new twist to the kit; a blue (obsidian) hoop detail on the collar, sleeves and socks.

Blue (obsidian) has long been used as a third colour on Arsenal’s shirts throughout their illustrious history and features in the Arsenal crest; and it’s inclusion in the kit for the 2012-13 season nods to that past but gives it a fresh, bold look.

Heritage details include an inner neck graphic which reads; “Victoria Concordia Crescit (the club’s latin logo meaning victory through harmony). The outer neck graphic is a nod to Chapman’s famous ‘WM formation’ that galvanised and shaped the modern game.

As is traditional, the new shorts are white but with a WM formation on the side, and ‘Arsenal’ in the back of the waistband.  The home kit socks are white with red and blue (obsidian) hoop detail.

Whilst the kit combines modern sport and youth style to give the club an iconic new look, Nike’s innovation gives the team our most technologically advanced kit to aid athlete comfort and performance. 

The new home kit is made from Nike’s ground-breaking recycled polyester, making it Nike’s most environmentally friendly kit ever produced.  Each kit (shirt and shorts) is made using up to thirteen recycled plastic water bottles.  This innovative manufacturing process reduces energy consumption by up to 30% compared to manufacturing traditional polyester. Since 2010 Nike has used an estimated 1115 million recycled plastic bottles to create its high performance kits.

The kits are made out of 23% lighter fabric with 20% stronger knit structure than Nike’s previous kits and feature Nike Dri-FIT technology to wick moisture away from athletes to help keep them cool and dry on-pitch.

Kits have bonded re-enforced t-bar junctions that support critical seams on the shirt and shorts and inner welded seams with a flat finish construction to improve comfort and performance.  Temperature regulation is helped by ventilation zones, consisting of a series of tiny laser cut holes from the under arms to the waistband, allowing air to circulate to keep players comfortable.

Nike Pro Combat base-layers are used by athletes to compliment playing kits to further improve comfort and increase protection from injury. Whilst fans and players can enjoy the Nike’s Arsenal Sportswear collection off the pitch, inspired by the club’s heritage.

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