The Best Wales Away Shirts
With The Red Wall finally getting back to following the independent football nation over land and sea, here’s my pick of Cymru’s best away shirts from down the years.
1976–79 Admiral
Arguably the most iconic template worn by the national side, the tramline design has gone in history as one of our best ever. Worn during the often forgotten Euro ’76 campaign and the near-miss of the ’78 World Cup, anyone lucky enough to own an original of either the home or away shirt without a doubt has one of the greatest ever designs in their collection. Despite that, the quality of the shirt itself is very 1970s, with the badge known to melt off in the wash and a rough material known to make nipples bleed!
1984–87 Adidas
Similar in design to its predecessor, this naughty number from Adidas was worn in yet another period of shortcomings for Cymru as the nation failed to reach any tournaments once again. It’s criminal that the green and yellow was never worn by the likes of Rush and Hughes in Mexico ‘86.
1993–95 Umbro
For me, football shirts peaked in design in the 90s. Have a look in the Canton’s concourse or the bars tucked away in European cities on matchdays and see how many Umbro and Lotto shirts are worn by Y Wal Goch. The whole aesthetic of them all resonates with many fans and for myself, there’s none better than this one worn for the Euro ’96 qualifying campaign. Some prefer the ‘Christmas Tree’ design from 1990–92 or the funky away shirt with the badge in the middle worn in the Bobby Gould era, but there’s something about this one for me. The green stripes with the hint of red, the oversized crest, that collar, there simply is none better in my eyes.
2006–2008 Kappa
A throwback to the shirts worn during Cymru’s only appearance at the World Cup in 1958, the retro look to Kappa’s efforts was radically different to their skin-tight performance-orientated shirts that were worn before it. They don’t make them like this anymore, a shame really but both the home and away variants will always be held in high regard by the fans.
2020–2022 Adidas
Our current away shirt will now always be synonymous with a midfielder from Caerphilly and a fullback from Neath after their goals in this shirt at last summer’s Euro’s. When the FAW revealed the new badge followed by our current shirts, I along with many others needed time for them to grow on me and grown they have. Will we see the yellow and green in Qatar next winter? I bloody hope so…
