Understanding Football Shirt Terminology: Vintage, Retro, and Classic
Finally get to understand all those different terms that are being used in the football shirt space.
Stefan Haas
Founder
Thu, 12 Sep 2024
The Term "Vintage" in Football Shirts
You may have noticed that in the world of football shirts, a lot of different terms are being used to identify an item, such as retro, vintage & classic. To be clear, we'll clarify these terms in the context of football shirt culture. For example, if you'd search the meaning of the word 'vintage' on google, you will see that the word vintage literally means "of age." With such an open meaning, there are many interpretations. Most antique dealers consider an item to be vintage if it is at least 40 years old (What’s The Difference Between “Antique” & “Vintage”?, z.d.).
To elaborate, vintage is a term that is being used is many markets, such as watches, clocks, furniture, you name it. In each market, people tend to interpret a term differently and in this blog we'll explain to you how the terms vintage, retro and classic are often used in the context of football shirts:
Vintage Football Shirts often refer to shirts from the period 2010 - present. It is a term that is being used for second-hand football shirts from recent years.
AC Milan x Lotto 1996/97 Home Shirt
Retro and Classic Football Shirts: What’s the Difference?
The term vintage, literally meaning "of age" is often slightly twisted in the world of football shirts. For example, in an article from VintageVedette, it is being stated that vintage items are products of at least 25 years old (Vedette, 2022). Although, this is a vintage lamp store. In the context of football shirts, the term classic or retro is often used to identify shirts from such age.
Retro & Classic Football Shirts are associated with shirts from before the year 2010. The English word retro derives from the Latin prefix retro, meaning backwards, or in past times (Wikipedia contributors, 2023). Classic is a term used for things that are historically memorable (“Classic”, 2024). These terms are often associated with reviving old & nostalgic times.
AC Milan 1998/99 Home Shirt (Classic) and Schalke 04 2013/14 Third (Vintage)
Nostalgia and the Appeal of Retro Football Shirts
For a lot of current adults, the times they grew up in were before the year 2000. A lot of young football fans used to wear a football shirt of their favorite club as a kid. Seeing the same shirt again 25 years later can bring back a lot of good memories from someone's childhood. Wearing that same 'retro' football shirt with your favorite player from back in the days can revive those nostalgic times.
There can be some exceptions, since people generally like to use the term classic for shirts that were used during iconic matches. An excellent example of this, is the 2014/15 Barcelona home shirt. Which was used during the Champions League final against Juventus, which Barcelona won of course. Their attack consisted of the trio Messi, Neymar and Suarez, players who were idolized by fans all around the world. So, even though this shirt was produced after 2010, fans tend to see this shirt as a classic.
The term retro football shirts is also being used by modern reproduction/replica sellers. These shirts look identical to the authentic shirts, but are often easily recognizable by the difference in material, sponsor details and purchase labels. These shirts are designed to evoke nostalgia for a bygone era and capitalize on the popularity of vintage football culture.
A lot of the popular ones are based on nostalgic moments in football history, such as the 2006/7 AC Milan away shirt with the Athens Champions League final text on the chest & Kaka on the back. This offers fans and collectors the opportunity to wear a piece of football history without having to pay the higher prices associated with authentic vintage shirts.
Conclusion: Clarifying the Confusion
If you're new to the world of football shirts, make sure to read our blog on how to identify unofficial products. Unfortunately, there are still many people who advertise these fake product as authentic ones and this can result in overpaying for a shirt that isn't even authentic, that would be a shame, right?
It can be a bit confusing, can't it? When we look at the facts, these terms are simply just interpreted differently in the world of football shirts. Vintage football shirts often refer to shirts from the period 2010 - present, while retro and classic football shirts are associated with shirts from before the year 2010. We hope you now know more about the terms Vintage, Retro and Classic.
Adios Amigos!
