The 10 best Arsenal kits and retro shirts of all time

As teams get set for the 2024/25 season, a flurry of new home, away and third kits are being launched by clubs and kit manufacturers worldwide.

The release of new kits fuels the excitement for the new season, but with the cost of kits increasing, more and more fans are opting to buy vintage and classic kits.

Kit designers, too, are using the best retro shirts as their inspiration for the new season's design.

For example, the 2023/24 home kit Arsenal paid homage to "The Invincibles", Arsène Wenger's classic team that went unbeaten for a whole Premier League season.

Arsenal fans are increasingly happy to spend similar amounts of money on retro kits, largely due to the fact that vintage kits tend to increase in value.

Whereas, new kits almost immediately drop in value – until of course enough time has elapsed so that they too are deemed retro.

Arsenal have had some of the most iconic retro kits in history, with fans still preferring to wear classic kits on match day at The Emirates.

Here, we will rank the 10 best retro vintage Arsenal football kits of all time, and why every Gunners fan should own these classic shirts:

10. 1970/71 Arsenal home shirt

This season saw Arsenal complete the league and FA Cup double, the fourth time this had been done. Throughout this season they made history by remaining undefeated at Highbury in the league, having only lost once all season (0-2 vs Crystal Palace).

In the same week as winning the first division at White Hart Lane, Arsenal then won the FA kit in their away strip against Liverpool.

This season's kit was a classic red and white shirt. Red on the body with white sleeves and collar, it doesn't get more retro than this kit. The away kit which the Gunners won the FA Cup was yellow on the body with a blue collar and rings on the sleeves.

Made out of 100% cotton, the skipper at the time Frank McLintock complained about the shirt material, stating it ‘was almost impossible to breathe through’. 

9. 2001/02 Arsenal Nike away shirt

Cruising their way to a domestic double, the gold away strip resembled their successful season for this campaign. 

The navy blue collar and wrings around the bottom of the sleeves added an extra bit of flair, somewhat bearing a resemblance to Henry and Bergkamp on the pitch. 

The Nike kit will always be remembered for having SEGA in print on the front of the shirt representing the end of the JVC sponsorship.

With the success of the JVC kits, Nike needed to nail this kit – which they did. 

Legendary striker, Kanu, when asked about this kit, said “For me, Arsenal’s shirt should always be gold or yellow. It runs through the club’s blood”. 

8. 2005/06 Arsenal Nike maroon home kit

In honour of the final season at Highbury, this kit featured a completely different design to what the Gunners had been used to before. 

A risk taken by Nike saw them scrap the classic red and white home kits, and replaced that with a dark red-current coloured kit with gold applications. 

This was inspired by the kit which Arsenal wore during their first season at Highbury 92 years ago in 1913.  

This kit originated in 1895 when at the time the club did not have any money to design and make a new kit. This prompted Arsenal’s newly signed players from Nottingham Forest to ask their old club for dark red shirts for the Gunners to wear as they moved to their new home, Highbury.

Although not what the north London side were used to, the kit added a sense of class and freshness to celebrate the end of an era at Highbury. 

7. 1982/83 Arsenal Umbro home kit

Worn by the likes of David O’Leary the 82/83 kit was classic arsenal. 

Although the green away strip went down like a lead balloon, the home strip was Arsenal kits to their simplest, but best. 

The bold V-neck was brought in to add a modern and dynamic look, different to that of the classic crew neck which other Arsenal shirts before had. 

A classic red and white kit with hooped socks was visually very pleasing. Although not having the most successful season in this kit, Umbro made up for their poor away kit with this home strip.

6. 1992/94 Arsenal Adidas home kit

The old-school Arsenal crest at the centre of the shirt was a design Adidas was starting to use more and more in recent times. Placed above the iconic JVC sponsor, the crest, and designer all in a single line is a touch of class. 

Featuring the Arsenal motto ‘Victoria Concordia Crescit’, translating into ‘Victory grows out of harmony’, the old Arsenal badge was nothing sort of beautiful for the time it was used. 

This kit saw some of the lowest of the lows, but also elation and highs. Finishing tenth in the league during the time, Arsenal wore this kit, but also won the FA Cup in extra time and the Cup Winners Cup in 1994. This kit is remembered for the iconic photo of Ian Wright in tears after Andrew Linighan's winning goal in the FA Cup. 

5. 1996/98 Arsenal Nike home

This home strip was a classic red and white kit, featuring the iconic white sleeves. It was a nod to Arsenal’s traditional colours, and the simplicity of the design can be a reason why it is still a popular kit with the supporters. 

Slick lines, bold red, and clean white sleeves made the kit instantly recognisable with Arsenal and with the time in which the Gunners wore it. 

Worn by Bergkamp, Anelka, Wright and Vieira, the 97/98 season saw the Gunners beating Manchester United to the title and winning the FA Cup against Newcastle United 2-0. 

Football kits often become intertwined with our memories, and this kit does. This kit will go down in history and will be on the front of everyone's mind when thinking about Arsenal winning their first Premier League title. 

4. 93/94 Arsenal Adidas away

Arsenal away kits made by Adidas have been iconic, and this 93/94 kit was the last before they moved to Nike for the following season. 

This kit is slick and a work of art, it was yellow with jacquard stripes whilst also having diagonal navy stripes running across the chest of the shirt. What makes this kit even classier is the slashes run into the shorts too. 

With the red collar being aesthetically pleasing and clean to look at, it is often overlooked as a kit due to the iconic ‘bruised banana’ being worn the year before.

2002-2004 Arsenal Nike home shirt

Nothing is needed to be said about the success of this season, which is why this kit has to be in the top 3 of the most iconic in the Gunners history. 

The O2 sponsor is iconic and is so memorable for this time in history for the North London side and is etched in the memories and walls of many posters and memories of all Arsenal fans. 

If I were to ask you to think of one Arsenal home shirt, I would be shocked if this did not cross your mind. 

Sometimes less is more.

Simplicity will never go out of style, and with the 03/04 home kit this saying’s meaning does not miss the target.

This kit will always have more sentimental meaning to Arsenal and their fans than anything else.

2. 1991-93 Arsenal Adidas away kit

If a kit could be marmite, then this is the closest we are going to get. Known as the ‘bruised banana’, the wacky away kit is like nothing we had ever seen before, or will ever see again. 

This is the most iconic and memorable Arsenal away kit there has ever been, mostly due to its conflicting opinions. Still to this day, opinions are still split (!) 

Adidas, the maker of the kit, most likely knew how this kit would go down, but how grateful we are for them making it. 

The old adidas logo, crest, and JVC sponsor all in bold red all work together to match the collar and lining of the sleeves. Together with the sliced triangles which are placed all over, this kit creates fantastic memories and makes you smile when you see this kit. 

1. 1988-90 Arsenal adidas home shirt

This year is by far the best arsenal kit there has been. Worn between 1988 and 90, this kit is synonymous with the title winning season of 1988.

Although this does not have the iconic moment of the winning at Anfield, it has class in terms of design rather than on the pitch.

This was the second Arsenal shirt which was designed by Adidas, the design is understated but has aged well. It is not flashy or has any wacky patterns, but rather has a fresh and clean finish, which is why it is one of the best. 

It is not always the sentiment which a kit holds which makes it the best, but rather the way it looks. Unlike the away kit which was part of one of Arsenal’s most iconic moments in the club's history (away at Anfield), the home kit holds the looks and a sense of class about it.

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