Sneaking up on us this World Cup isn’t it? A tournament all about winning, becoming immortal and realising the dreams of a nation, right? Wrong. It’s about having a better kit than everyone else. It’s about having a kit so damn fine that it papers over the cracks of beating Iran 1-0 thanks to a dubious late Harry Kane penalty.
With all the kits now out we’ve made the brave decision to list which 10 nations have the best jerseys of the 2022 World Cup, in order, obviously. Have a scroll and then feel free to send us a handwritten letter telling us how much you agree, or simply find our social channels and unleash a barrage of all holy abuse on us, whichever you feel most comfortable with. Let’s go…
11 Croatia
Alright, alright, we said 10. But we’ve had to stick this one on the end, it’s too good to leave out. The home shirt goes all Tetris and the away shirt is glow in the dark chess. Give us both.
10 Belgium
If the away shirt was as good as the home shirt then we’re looking at a top 3 nomination. But through no fault of their own, it’s impossible to follow putting actual FIRE on the sleeves of the home shirt. Still trying to work out how a home shirt can be 10/10 but simultaneously look like it’s been designed by a 4 year old boy.
9 Argentina
That same theory above applies to the Argentina away shirt. It looks like it’s been designed by a kid loaded up on sugar on FIFA Ultimate Teams, but weirdly works perfectly. Home shirt is typically smart, you won’t be rushing to buy it if you’ve owned any other Argentina home shirt, but it’s solid. Welcome to the top 10, Argentina.
8 Senegal
This is the pick of our PUMA offerings. The home shirt injects that energy of Senegal, and with the trim on the collar and scuffs you have yourself a winner. That away shirt will become more iconic as the years pass, and as much as we love that template, it does restrict the brand pushing any higher in this list.
7 England
The away shirt is stunning, we already knew that. Just look at that collar, now imagine Foden and Grealish both wearing up like Cantona. If we did this list the moment the England home shirt came out, then England would be lower. But… we saw it on pitch and we reckon there’s gonna be a fair few backtracking with us. Just don’t drip gravy on it when you’re still wearing it to eat your Christmas dinner in.
6 France
The French are just effortlessly elegant and stylish aren’t they? The home shirt is typically sharp, while the away shirt is all about the details. Do they have the bold factor of the 1998 designs? No. But they do complement a more lifestyle approach to replica well, and for that reason we rate them. Even if they might be a little forgettable in years to come.
5 South Korea
South Korea could lose all three groups games and these designs will still be remembered for the right reasons. Should their golden son… Son… spearhead them into the latter stages of the tournament, these designs will become iconic.
4 Mexico
Death, taxes and Mexico having a banging World Cup kit collection are certainties in this life. Another adidas masterpiece full of abstract patterns that will serve as a permanent memory of wondering why you’re half-cut on a cold December Wednesday morning in Walkabout watching Chicharito celebrate a last minute winner against Saudi Arabia to keep your accumulator alive for at least the lunchtime kick off.
3 Brazil
That away kit under the lights is an instant World Cup kit icon, and while the home kit might look a tad on the plain side upon first sight, it’s actually a work of art with it’s full body graphics subtly shining through. Nike’s best kits of this World Cup, for us.
2 Japan
Another proud member of the elite never-had-a-bad-world-cup-kit club. Does anyone else fall in love with Japan every World Cup? Well this tournament is no different, and these kits are stunning in every sense. As soon as England have choked to three draws in the group stage, we’ll be wearing these. Putting it out there, in 20 years time, these are the World Cup 2022 kits that you wish you bought.
1 Germany
Not saying that German brand adidas put more effort into their own national kits, but, come on, they NEVER miss. They even manage to make the home shirt look better every year. But this right here, could be the greatest Germany home and away shirt combo ever made. You know that they’re winning the whole damn thing too, don’t you?
Honourable mentions (basically a list to try and defuse your anger)… Denmark, Tunisia & Spain.
