Wembley was a sea of black and white last Sunday as Newcastle ended a long, long (70 years to be precise) major trophy drought with a deserved victory over Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final. I say “major” because there is an awful lot of Intertoto Cup erasure going on but I digress.
Newcastle have long been one of the more evocative sides from an aesthetic point of view, even in times when their on-pitch performances have fallen short. Their timeless black and white striped kits have often been the envy of many, and though there are several other striped teams playing in English football (not least the Toon’s bitter rivals) the lower density at the top of the English pyramid compared to other nations like Italy only makes the kits stand out more.
In the next instalment of our “Why They Wear” series, we’ll explore how Newcastle ended up in their famous colours.
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Have Newcastle always played in black and white stripes?
Like many clubs in world football Newcastle United have a somewhat complicated history.
Some sources state that United were formed as a merger between two rival sides in 1892, Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, but in truth the formation of the club was not a clean merger but rather the outcome of West End being pushed to the brink of financial collapse. Many would instead point to Stanley FC (formed in 1881), a predecessor to Newcastle East End, as the true origins of the club, but the matter remains a source of debate.
In their first few seasons as “Newcastle United Football Club”, the club would take on the all red shirts previously used by East End, pairing them with white shorts (yes, really). Following a club meeting in 1894 though black and white striped shirts, which had been used occasionally as alternate strips in the early days, were taken on as the new home shirt style. Newcastle have played in black and white ever since.
Why do Newcastle wear black and white?
The usage of black and white stripes represented something of a fresh start for Newcastle United in 1894, but the reason for the colour choice is a matter of intriguing speculation.
A prevailing theory is that the colours were chosen to represent Northumbrian tartan or Border tartan. One of the oldest tartans in Great Britain dating back several centuries, Border tartan was popularised in the 1820s and was identifiable by its bold black and white check.
Another theory is that the black was used to represent the coal mining industry, a vital aspect of life in the North East at the time.
Why do Newcastle wear stripes?
As with the colour choices, the decision to use stripes is the subject of debate. Some accounts suggest the stripes were chosen to help the players look thinner, but the truth behind the decision may lie in the history of Newcastle West End.
West End employed a variety of kit styles, notably hoops in the late 1880s. These same hoops inspired the legendary 1995 away shirt (of grandad collar fame) and subsequent other away shirts. In the early 1890s West End would also wear stripes, albeit not black and white ones.
Regardless of the reason, Newcastle United were very clear about their new direction as seen in the minutes of a club meeting in 1894, even specifying how thick the stripes should be (although nobody’s measuring now).
‘It was agreed that the Club’s colours should be changed from red shirts and white knickers to black and white shirts (two inch stripe) and dark knickers.’.
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