Why Arsenal are wearing unusual kit combination today

It's the first time they've worn red shorts since 1978.

Reuben Pinder

Why Arsenal are wearing unusual kit combination today

Why?

Arsenal’s small adjustment to their kit for today’s match against West Brom has got people talking.

They are wearing their home kit, but with red shorts as opposed to the traditional white.

#Arsenal will wear red shorts as a part of the home kit at the Hawthorns today. 🔴🔴
It’s the first time since 1978 against QPR.#WBAvAFC #COYG pic.twitter.com/T3MeuvUwEE

— 𝗛𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗕𝗨𝗥𝗬! (@the49Highbury) December 31, 2017

Football kits are part of every club’s identity, and fans aren’t always receptive to change, so when Arsenal emerged from the tunnel wearing red shorts today, despite it being their primary colour, it baffled people.

It might seem a minuscule adjustment but imagine Man United wearing red shorts. It looks odd to the football watching eye. That’s why no-one could quite understand why they made the change.

The last time Arsenal came to the Hawthorns, they wore their home kit as normal, with the white shorts, but the Premier League stipulates that teams must not wear kits that show too many similarities.

The rules regarding kits state: “When playing in league matches the players of each participating club shall wear strip which is of a sufficient contrast that match officials, spectators and television viewers will be able to distinguish clearly between the two teams.”

It will be for the benefit of the officials that Arsenal changed to red shorts and socks, in order to distinguish whose legs belong to whom when trying to judge challenged correctly.

West Brom’s home kit contains white shorts too and as the home team, it was up to Arsenal to be accommodating. So for the first time since 1978 they decided to don red shorts.

And it provoked a mixed reaction.