World Cup of Kits (Group D)

 After the great performances from group C we have two solid showings here, along with two pretty mediocre ones. Not the worst group but also not the best, here they are:

Group D: France, Australia, Denmark, Tunisia

France: 

The defending champs come out with a bit of a banger. Big fan of these kits! Nike has had a return to solid form in the past 3 outings, and thankfully for the French they are not in the kit group of death (although to be honest they may have had a case to advance even there).

I really enjoy the use of the gold on the Navy shirt. I feel like it should be a thing that only returning champions can include gold on their kits; I feel like it would be a cool subtle reminder much like a star over the crest. That being said the gold just works here it looks great on the blue and it looks even better on the white. The red socks just give it that finishing touch.

The white kit is also really strong on its own. Subtle blue accents form a nod to Toile de Jouy fabric, including images of the Cockerel, the Arc de Triomphe and the Clairefontaine football center. 

It’s just a couple of really well done kits that will have the defending champs looking great in Qatar. The French sweep the group and end in 1st place with 9 points, let’s just hope they left the Fortnite celebrations in 2018.

Results: W against Australia, W against Denmark, W against Tunisia. Advance with 9 points in first place of the group!

Australia:

Aaaaand just like that Nike returns to mediocrity. I feel like they took the Netherlands kit and just said “copy and paste, no one will notice. How could they? They’re on opposite sides of the world!” And they wouldn’t be wrong, IF the entire tournament wasn’t played in the same place!! It’s just laziness at this point, and I am severely dissapointed.

I get that the pattern on the yellow is slightly different than the Netherlands, and I actually think it works better here. That does not mean that I am a fan and the return of the Inter collar for another mid ass shirt completely delegitimizes anything that the yellow and green is doing for me. 

Australia is lucky to not be the worst kit in this group, with a slight edge over Denmark’s pajama shirts, they finish in third and we’ll send these kits right back down under.

Results: L against France, L against Tunisia, W against Denmark. 3rd place with 3 points

Denmark: 

There’s really just not a lot to say about these things. Mostly because there’s like nothing going on with these things. I know I asked for more simplicity from Puma, but this is certainly not the solution. I understand that Hummel wanted to protest the inhumane nature of the preparation of this years World Cup, and I fully respect that, but that doesn’t mean that these kits look good.

Maybe their motto this year is “Sneaking up on the competitiion.” Which I guess makes sense based on their dark horse status going into Qatar.

From a pure kit competition like this, these are just too aggressively nothing and mark a quick and painful trip for the Danes in this group.

Results: L against Tunisia, L against France, L against Australia. Finish with 0 points and do not advance.

Tunisia: 

Kappa really told Hummel, “I see your 0 discernible logos and I raise you 12,” and you know what? I’m here for it. I feel like whenever I see a Kappa kit there are always logos all over the place, but do your thing! Especially when that thing is putting out solid kits like this one. 

These jerseys are a great mix of simplicity and intricacy. The subtle design on the shirts work really well and has really cool historical relevance. 

Apparently the design mimics the “Armor of Hannibal” found on the body of the Carthiginian general in Tunisia in 1909. The backstory alone would advance this kit, especially in this group. Let alone the fact that it genuinely just looks really good.

Unfortunately for Tunisia, I think the France kit is just a little too class for them to be a group winner, but they finish in a strong 2nd.

Results: W against Denmark, W against Australia, L against France. Finish in second place with 6 points!

Overall Results: