Barcelona has had a long-standing history with black-coloured kits. The first such instance was back in the 2011-12 campaign when the Blaugranas combined black with yellow for the away kit.
They carried forward the jersey to the next season as the third kit before opting for black once again in the 2013-14 campaign.
Most recently, the Catalans donned an eye-catching black-and-gold jersey in the 2020-21 season which also happened to be Lionel Messi’s last dance at the club.
A return after three years
Earlier today, X user and kit insider Memorabilia1899 released a leaked image of the finalised Barcelona away kit for the 2024-25 campaign which is predominantly black once more.
The jersey features a high collar that is in uniform continuity with the shirt’s black. The club crest features centrally on the torso while the Nike logo is on the right side.
Interestingly, both the club crest and the swoosh have been given a tone-on-tone black finish with an outline of garnet and blue fading into each other.
Úʟᴛɪᴍᴀ ʜᴏʀᴀ ♠️
ᴏꜰꜰɪᴄɪᴀʟ ᴀᴡᴀʏ ᴊᴇʀꜱᴇʏ
ꜰᴄ ʙᴀʀᴄᴇʟᴏɴᴀ 2024/25
ᴘʟᴀʏᴇʀ ᴠᴇʀꜱɪᴏɴ ᴀᴅᴠ
ɴɪᴋᴇ ᴄᴏᴅᴇ ꜰɴ8664-011ᴄᴏʟᴏᴜʀꜱ ꜱᴄʜᴇᴍᴇ
ʙʟᴀᴄᴋ ᴜɴɪᴠᴇʀꜱɪᴛʏ
ʀᴇᴅ ʜʏᴘᴇʀ
ʀᴏʏᴀʟ ʙʟᴀᴄᴋ pic.twitter.com/3a8ZoZ5Ic2— fcbarcelonacollection.com (@memorabilia1899) March 25, 2024
The centre of the jersey houses the primary sponsor logo, Spotify, in bold red while the back of the shirt sees the traditional logo of the United Nations refugee agency cause.
The final, yet most eye-catching detail, is the side stripes which feature a bold red stripe on the right and a blue stripe on the left.
Possibly the end of an era?
Barcelona and Nike have enjoyed a special partnership over the years, for the American giants have been the club’s main shirt manufacturers for 27 years now.
That association, however, is on the verge of breaking apart as revealed by Joan Laporta in a recent press conference.
“We told Nike that, based on violations to our agreement, we have decided to terminate the contract. We informed them, and they have taken the matter to court. We are looking at solutions for this measure,” the President said.
If indeed Nike’s offer does not meet the club’s demands, the next season could well be one of the final Barcelona jerseys with the iconic swoosh for a long time.
