Admiral Tap Into England ’82 For Jubilo Iwata Kits

Admiral enjoyed their heyday back in the 70s and 80s, reigning as replica royalty for a few decades. Now they've popped back on the radar in Japan of all places, outfitting newly promoted J1 League side Júbilo Iwata with a kit design that uses the iconic England ’82 template.

We’ve pointed it out before, but Japan is an untapped resource for inspirational jersey design. While the likes of Nike, adidas and PUMA all boast teams in the J-League, it’s also a place where smaller brands such as Mizuno, Yonex and Penalty can find ground and thrive, with exciting designs that are free from some of the conventions and traditions that bind European kits. And now you can count Admiral among those brands, with its resurgence underpinned by a wealth of vintage designs to draw from in its back catalogue. Case in point: the use of the England World Cup ’82 shirt template for the Júbilo Iwata kit for the club’s coming campaign.

For those that aren’t familiar with Admiral (hint: they won’t sell you car insurance) they are England's oldest sportswear brand, who were at the height of their popularity during the 1970s and ‘80s, sponsoring the likes of Manchester United, Leeds United, Tottenham Hotspur, and Rangers, to name but a few. But what they’re probably best known for was the aforementioned England World Cup shirt from 1982. Despite the team’s performance not doing it justice, the design was so good that it took on cult status with supporters, cementing Admiral’s place in jersey culture forevermore.

And it’s this classic that serves as inspiration for the Júbilo Iwata kit selection – the home shirt coming in sky blue with navy, white and gold accents through the shoulder panels, the away inverting that look, with a white base joined by sky blue and navy panels, while the goalkeepers get a choice of three colour schemes (pink, green, yellow) on the same template. The only tweak is that the v-neck doesn't drop quite as low – some things just have to stay in the past!