Most four-season kit comparisons follow one designer’s thinking. This one doesn’t.
Liverpool’s last four home shirts span two different kit manufacturers. The 23/24 and 24/25 seasons were Nike’s — the final two years of that partnership. From 1 August 2025, adidas took over, returning to Anfield after thirteen years away on a deal reported at over £60 million a season.
And what adidas did with those two seasons is the interesting part. Nike spent its final years referencing Liverpool’s history. adidas came back and immediately started mining its own.
The 26/27 Home Kit
Released 19 May 2026, and adidas went to the shirt a lot of Liverpool supporters would have picked themselves.
The base is Active Maroon — a darker, richer take on the club’s traditional red — carrying an all-over geometric graphic of white line details and triangular forms across the front, sleeves and back. It reinterprets the 1989-91 adidas home shirt, worn when Kenny Dalglish’s side won the 1989/90 title, finishing nine points clear to claim a record-breaking eighteenth league championship.
White handles the detailing: the adidas logo, the Liverpool crest, the L.F.C. lettering on the chest, the Three Stripes across the shoulders, and the collar and cuff trim. Standard Chartered on the front, Expedia on the sleeve. Active Maroon shorts and socks complete it.
There’s also a new name and number style on the back, aligned with the club’s typeface introduced last season and drawn from the wings and talons of the Liver bird. That makes personalising this shirt worth more than it usually is — the typeface only appears if you add a name and number.
The launch put club legends Ian Rush, John Barnes, Alan Hansen and Bruce Grobbelaar alongside current players including Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitike and Rio Ngumoha.
Tech: the player-issue version includes body-mapped texture, ventilation zones and an authentic licensed product label near the lower hem.
The 25/26 Home Kit
Available 1 August 2025 — the day the adidas deal officially began. Officially “Strawberry Red” with crisp white accents, cuffed sleeves and a simple crewneck, with white trim on the crest and sponsor. Strawberry Red shorts and socks throughout.
The reference is the 2006-07 strip — the first kit adidas produced after taking over from Reebok, worn by Steven Gerrard, Xabi Alonso and Daniel Agger. It’s a deliberate choice for a first season back: rather than reaching for the club’s most celebrated era, adidas pointed at the last time it held the contract.
The other significant change was the badge. Nike had used the standalone Liver bird across its final two seasons — and had planned a shield around the crest for 24/25 before pulling it at the last minute. adidas added the shield in its first season back.
How the Two Compare
| 26/27 | 25/26 | |
|---|---|---|
|
Released |
19 May 2026 |
1 August 2025 |
|
Colour |
Active Maroon |
Strawberry Red |
|
Pattern |
All-over geometric, white triangular forms |
Plain, no pattern |
|
References |
adidas' 1989-91 Liverpool kit |
adidas' 2006-07 Liverpool kit |
|
Collar |
White-trimmed |
Simple crewneck, white trim |
|
Chest |
Crest, plus L.F.C. lettering in white |
Crest with shield |
|
Numbering |
New Liver bird typeface |
Previous style |
The red got darker. Strawberry Red is a bright, conventional Liverpool red; Active Maroon is deliberately deeper. Two seasons in, adidas is progressively taking the club’s red somewhere richer than Nike ever did.
The shirts also got busier. The 25/26 was plain — no pattern at all, just colour and trim. The 26/27 carries an all-over geometric print across the whole shirt. If you want a clean Liverpool shirt, that’s the 25/26. If you want one with something happening on it, that’s the current one.
Constants: Standard Chartered on the front and Expedia on the sleeve across both seasons.
Which Season Should You Buy?
The 26/27 if you want what the squad wears this season, and if the reference matters to you. The 1989-91 shirt points at the 1989/90 title — the club’s eighteenth, and the last before the thirty-year wait. That carries more weight for Liverpool supporters than almost any other archive kit could. The new Liver bird typeface also makes a name-and-number set worth adding.
The 25/26 if you want something plainer, or if the milestone appeals. It’s the first adidas Liverpool shirt in thirteen years, which is its own kind of collector logic, and the plain Strawberry Red is far easier to wear casually than a shirt covered in geometric print.
If you’re buying for a specific player, check the squad against the season — Liverpool’s squad has changed meaningfully between the two.
On authentic versus replica: for match-going or everyday wear the replica is the sensible pick, and it’s visually near-identical at any normal distance. Go authentic if you’re playing in it or want the exact squad spec — expect roughly a £35 gap between them.
Both seasons are on Novelship, every shirt authenticated in-house before it ships. The 25/26 is the harder of the two to find in popular sizes now that it’s a season old, so it’s worth checking availability before you settle on one.
FAQ's
The adidas 1989-91 Liverpool home shirt, known for its geometric pattern, worn during the season Kenny Dalglish’s side won the 1989/90 title — the club’s record-breaking eighteenth league championship, secured nine points clear at the top.
The 2006-07 Liverpool strip, the first kit adidas made for the club after taking over from Reebok, worn by Gerrard, Xabi Alonso and Agger.
The deal officially began on 1 August 2025, making 25/26 adidas’ first season back after thirteen years away. It’s the brand’s third stint as Liverpool’s kit partner, on a deal reported at over £60 million a season.
No. Standard Chartered is the front-of-shirt sponsor and Expedia the sleeve sponsor across both seasons
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