Iconic Kit Suppliers

Considering a recent chat at the bultras Independent I recall some masters that have shaped the world of football. Based on research via twitter and facebook here is my personal selection of the most influential team kit suppliers of all time:

	adidas Uncapitalized and stylized name with a lower case 'a', this sporting super brand was created by Adolf Dassler after split up with his brother in 1947. Rudolf formed a new firm that he called Ruda from Rudolf Dassler, while Adolf registered Adidas AG (from Adi Dassler) and their 3-stripes and Trefoil are responsible for some of the coolest kits ever - from simple classics (such as Holland'74, Brasil, France and Peru in World Cup'78 and all West Germany'80s) to design masterpieces as the iconic France, Wales, QPR, Man United, Arsenal, Penarol, Gremio, Flamengo, River Plate, Porto, Girondins and Anderlecht in 1980s. Actually Adidas bought the renowned branding in 1952 from the Finnish sports company Karhu Sports.
	Admiral Old fine English brand, Admiral were replica kit pioneers in the 70s. Beginning with Leeds United as in the 1973–74 season they wore the first visibly branded kit in the English top flight. Realising the potential of the replica kit market, Admiral brokered a deal with the English football association in 1974 to produce the first commercially available England shirt that featured a sportswear manufacturers logo. They agreed a five-year contract for a starting payment of £15,000 a year or a 10 per cent royalty. Lately Admiral imposed on iconic tramline design for Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham, Coventry City, Crvena Zvezda Belgrade, Servette, Malmo FF, Wales, Belgium etc.
	Bukta Another vintage English brand. Primarly the company was founded mainly to produce shorts for British soldiers fighting in the Boer Wars. They apparently produced kits for Nottingham Forest way back in 1884. In the 1930s they were supplying most Englsin and Scotish first division teams. In the 70s even Ajax were wearing Bukta kits for their European Cup triumphs.
	Ennerre (NR) If there’s one brand to associate with Calcio'80s it is the NR. Created by ex-player Nicola Raccuglia, they dominated the Italian market before disappearing in the 2000s. Worn by 80s icons galore – the NR brand has dressed the Maradona's Napoli of the two Scudetto and UEFA Cup, the Milan of Wilkins, Hateley and Baresi, AS Roma of  Falcao and Bruno Conti, Lazio of Giordano and Manfredonia, Sampdoria of Vialli and Mancini and Fiorentina of Antognoni and in addition to Kashima Antlers of Zico and New York Cosmos of Pele and Chinaglia and many others that, remember them all, seems very difficult.
	Erima Before Adidas started manufacturing the shirts of Die Mannschaft there was Erima, who made them from 1965 to 1980. Adidas actually bought their German rivals in 1976 but the Erima name lived on and they made some brilliant kits in the late 70s. The company's head office is based in the Swabian town of Pfullingen near Stuttgart, while branch offices are also located in Austria, Switzerland, France, Belgium and Holland. Erima has also been the supplier of top teams such as Schalke, Stuttgart, Koln, Kaiserslautern and Eintracht Frankfurt.
	Hummel Based in Aarhus, Denmark the company was founded back in 1923 by  Messmer brothers, Albert and Michael Ludwig, founders of Messmer & Co in Hamburg. The company became Danish after being taken over by Bernhard Weckenbrock in 1956, who moved its base to Kevelaer, North Rhine-Westphalia. The brand struck gold in the 80s as their fantastic half-pinstripe kits adorned the equally fantastic Danish Dynamite team which became many fans 2nd team. They got blaze traction in Europe with Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa and even decking out Real Madrid for 9 years. Hummel logo is a stylized bumble bee, as hummel is German for bumble bee. However, the hummel bumble bee also represents the company’s history as the notorious underdog succeeding against all odds.
	Kappa Having found success in the 70s on streets and ski slopes with casualwear and outerwear, the Robe di Kappa brand turned to athletics and football. They hit kit design gold in the 80s with Ajax, Feyenoord and Juventus huge v-neck and collar shirts with the Ariston ad. Lately Barcelona and Roma dressed to kill in Kappa garments at the end of the century.
	Le Coq Sportif The French brand was at its height in the late 1970s and early 80s, synonymous with one of the great teams and shirts of the era - Saint-Étienne’s Manufrance and SuperTele kits. Also PSG's iconic top known as the 'Hechter Shirt' after fashion designer Daniel Hechter. They supplied World Cup winners Italy‘82 and Argentina’86 and Aston Villa’s European glory in 1982.
	Lotto Established in 1939 by the Caberlotto family who were the owners of the football team of Treviso. The Italian company exploded onto the scene in the early 90s with some really bold designs (too bold with 'that' Fiorentina design!). Anyone who creates those Croatia kits of 1996-1998 and the Milan 'Motta' shirt of 1993 deserves a mention.
	Meyba After years creating casualwear for the Catalan beaches, local company Meyba hit the big time in 1982, supplying Barcelona for 10 years and kitting out iconic players like Simonsen, Schuster, Quini, Maradona, Bakero, Guardiola, Koeman, Laudrup and Stoichkov.
	Patrick Formed 1892 in France by Patrick Benetau. Before moving into kits they were famous for their 2-striped boots, worn by Platini and Kevin Keegan. Never managed to sign up any huge clubs but did kit out teams aplenty across Europe in the early 1980s.
	Penalty Brazilian brand formed in 1970 which soon became a leading supplier of footballs and kits in their huge domestic market. Created some great kits in the 80s/90s, e.g. Sao Paolo, Fluminense, Gremio - with huge sponsor logos like TAM and Coca Cola
	Puma Formed by Rudi Dassler after splitting with brother Adi, Puma (originally Ruda!) are often overlooked yet made some crackers in the 70s and 80s as Gladbach’s Datsun kit, Austria'82 World Cup, AS Saint-Étienne, Crvena Zvezda Belgrade and Botev Plovdiv halved sleeves top in mid-80s. Botev Plovdiv 1987 Gladbach with Datsun ASSE with Georgi Slavkov
	Topper Argentine/Brazilian brand, huge in South America in the 80s, providing kits for many of the top teams and making sponsorship deals with the likes of Sócrates. But it’s the Brazilian Seleção for which they’re best known, especially the 82 vintage.
	Umbro Where else to end such selection but the iconic English brand, formed in 1924 by the Humphreys Brothers (Um-Bro). It has produced kits for many notable football clubs over the years - almost every bigger one in Britain as well as Independiente, Flamengo, Olympique Lyonnais, Colo-Colo, Gremio, Santos, Vasco da Gama, Lazio, Internazionale Milano, Ajax, CSKA Moscow, Hajduk Split and Olympiacos. Their kit debut was the 1934 FA Cup final, with both Manchester City and Portsmouth wearing Umbro. At the 1966 World Cup, 15 of the 16 teams wore Umbro.