MLS’s four outfitters are considering changing uniform designs or perhaps adding third team jerseys for next season.
Nike (which outfits five MLS teams), adidas (three), Puma and Reebok (one team each) will discuss the issue further at a meeting with league officials prior to U.S. Cup ’96.
MLS commissioner Doug Logan admits the league must weigh both the lucrative marketing aspects of such a decision as well as the potential backlash.
“We’re looking at it long and hard,” said Logan. “You can’t ignore the opportunity to market something new and different, but we are trying to establish a level of permanence, a tradition, so there’s a danger to start changing things too quickly.”
Logan said all the options will be discussed: To change the jersey designs, to add a third jersey design to the existing home and away shirts, or to maintain the status quo.
MLS replica jerseys, which were not available in many league cities until late April, sell for $65 apiece at games and $59.99 in catalogs.
According to Logan, several NBA and NHL teams have begun marketing third jerseys, and many baseball teams are considering doing so.
Several of the NFL throwback jerseys that were made for the league’s 50th anniversary season have become so popular they are still being manufactured and sold despite the fact some teams no longer use them for games. The San Francisco 49ers have altered their jerseys to incorporate some of the elements used in their throwback versions.
Changing uniforms may modernize a team’s image, but it can also disrupt its tradition. Few teams have sparked outrage over uniforms to the extent of English club Manchester United, which has added uniform designs repeatedly the past few seasons and been accused of gouging the fans.
The club had to abandon one of its jerseys in mid-game this past season — a depressing gray strip in which United had lost three games and tied one. After Manchester United went into the locker room at halftime trailing Southampton 3-0, the players changed shirts. The gray uniforms were officially retired a few days later.
“We don’t want what happened with the [Chicago] White Sox,” said Logan. “Remember that? They were changing their uniforms every other year. You just can’t do that.”
The league had little input as to the design of team logos and uniforms, leaving that responsibility in the hands of outfitters Nike (MetroStars, Los Angeles, Tampa Bay, Dallas and San Jose), adidas (Columbus, Kansas City and Washington), Puma (Colorado) and Reebok (New England).
Logan also said the similarities of some teams’ jersey designs cause confusion, especially on television, when those teams play each other. He cited an example of watching a Colorado-Tampa Bay game during which he had trouble telling the teams apart.
by Soccer America Senior Editor Ridge Mahoney