The symbol of disappearance
Eric Cantona, David Beckham, Fernando Torres, when mentioning them, in addition to talent, what do you remember most about? They often wear long-sleeved shirts when competing. Many other players have also turned long-sleeved shirts into a brand. Rio Ferdinand once recalled his moments when facing Thierry Henry - who turned the image of a long-sleeved shirt combined with gloves into a symbol: "Just look at the long-sleeved Arsenal shirt, you immediately know who the opponent on the other side is. It is time to concentrate, because he has ended the careers of many people".
Long-sleeved shirts were a style in the Premier League, until about 15 years ago.
When Under Armour began to succeed with thebase layer in American sports, football equivalent manufacturers changed their orientation. Instead of "fitting" long-sleeved competition shirts, the combo of short-sleeved shirts on the outside plus lining shirts on the inside became a trend throughout the 2010s. Some brands have even stopped producing long-sleeved shirts, with the reason that the jersey must be the lightest and most technological.
Cristiano Ronaldo, Antoine Griezmann or Kylian Mbappe are still loyal to the long-sleeved shirt style, and fans can still buy copies. But genuine long-sleeved shirts for players are really extremely rare to appear in matches or at stores in the past 10 years.
However, this season, everything has changed. The Ao Dai version of the competition has returned. Doug Bierton - founder of Classic Football Shirts - called this "the rebirth of the golden age of football". Bierton has always had a special passion for long-sleeved shirts. In addition to running one of the world's most famous vintage clothing stores, in 2021, he also made a YouTube video called "The sad decline of Ao Dai", a reaction to the 2010 period as he shared.
In some Premier League clubs, the sports science department also prohibits players from wearing long-sleeved shirts, while Arsenal part ways out of this shirt later. They have a tradition of the captain deciding whether the whole team should wear long or short arms before each match. That tradition was broken in November 2013, when Mathieu Flamini... amputated his long arm before the match against Marseille. But this season, the long-sleeved shirt has returned to Arsenal, and is especially prominent at clubs using Adidas.
Adidas is not the only brand to revive the competitions long-sleeved shirt Nike also made for Chelsea but Adidas is producing shirts for 8 Premier League teams, accounting for 40%. The company even let 3 legendary stripes run along the entire arm and ended with a meticulously designed armrest.
Fans like it, players like it, when the 2025 - 2026 home jersey model is launched in May. Martin Zubimendi, Ethan Nwaneri, Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard continuously choose long-sleeved shirts instead of short-sleeved shirt/ underwear combos like many other teammates.
I have always liked ao dai, Trossard said, They have been out of football for a long time. When I was young, I often wore them, so when they came back, I was very happy. I like the feeling of wearing them, and a little nostalgic.
What brought the ao dai back?
Thomas Mace - Vice President of Design at Adidas, explained: "We always listen to the players and the club. Recently, the demand from both players and fans has increased sharply. For players, it is the comfort and efficiency of playing in many weather conditions. For the club and the fans, that is also the traditional value, the identity. So this is the right time to bring it back.
Bierton pointed out that Liverpool and Newcastle United's Adidas sponsorship could have helped the long-sleeved shirts stand out. Players such as Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister and Nick Woltemade embraced this nostalgic style. At Liverpool, the ao dai is even more prominent when they debut their third shirt of the season. They collaborated with All Our Friends - a creative agency founded by Jake Nolan - to make promotional videos. Hugo Ekitike, Isak, Robertson, Mc Manaman, Nyoni and Fuka Nagano (women's team) participated in the recording that Nolan called "crazy". When we presented the idea to Adidas, they looked at each other like we had just invented bulbs, Nolan said.
To create a realistic product, All Our Friends took players to Dock Road in Merseyside to play the "one bounce" game. Everyone talks about long-sleeved dresses, Nolan added, My childhood memories were when my grandfather showed me a photo of a long-sleeved Umbro outfit sponsored by Hitachi. Then, in my father's time, there was a photo of Kenny Dalglish playing football and scoring against Chelsea to win the championship.
Current outfits are designed in the direction of intersecting sports and fashion life, making long-sleeved shirts look more beautiful and " cool". And in the Northwest of England, the longan is much warmer.
Players' Choices
Players also want to have their own options. Kai Havertz is a typical example. Since his time at Chelsea in 2020, he has always worn a short-sleeved shirt combo - underwear. After only a few friendly matches in Singapore, the weather was so hot that he was willing to wear short-sleeved shirts without a jacket. When Arsenal played against MU - Havertz's only game this season before suffering a knee injury - he wore an away long-sleeved shirt.
Not everyone is loyal to an option. Martin Odegaard is constantly changing. He wore long-sleeved suits against Leeds and Liverpool. In other matches, he was short-handed. Maybe it depends on how you feel every day. Before the match against Liverpool at Anfield in August, both he and Martinelli had 2 options hanging in the dressing room.
Previously, the short-sleeved shirt in the competition version always held a closer hug than the one sold to fans. But this year, the competition ao dai is cut wider and more inviting, to ensure comfort. Mace explained: We want to redesign the long-sleeved silhouette from a modern performance perspective. New material, new shape, new details - equal to a short sleeve shirt but still retaining classic features. Players choose long sleeves not only for function, but also to express style. That proves that we are balanced in authenticity and modernity.
Bierton recalls the old story: since 2008, Adidas Tech Fit was born, players can choose Formotion (comfort, performance) or Tech Fit (tech). Only Arjen Robben really likes Tech Fit. The majority choose a wider version. At that time, the players had many options, but the fans did not. While players can choose short and long, from size 4 to size 12, fans can only buy short-sleeved shirts and size S, M, L, XL".
Now it's different. Fans bought the exact version the player wore. " Too much memories can be boring, but this is like last year looking in the past to move forward," Nolan said, "Liver Liverpool's shirt evokes emotions about the late 80s, when Liverpool won the national championship. History and stories can be told through costumes, evoking memories. I think about Torres and (Xabi) Alonso when he watches the game with his father, he thinks about Dalglish and (Alan) Hansen.
The cold winter months are approaching, which will make it clearer for us who is really the most beautiful one to wear the long-sleeved shirt in the current generation of players in the Premier League. For those who love the beauty of football, perhaps this aesthetic game has not disappeared. Who knows, it is returning stronger than ever.
