I’m a kit nerd. There’s no two ways about it. Kit reveal season is honestly one of my favourite things about summer, and when Aston Villa officially unveil their Under Armour kits, it’ll mark the first time in four years a new manufacturer comes into the fold at B6.
And while I’m pretty psyched to see what UA have in store for the club, I’ll admit I’m a little sad to see Macron walk out the door.
Now, I’m of the opinion that Macron’s always gotten a bit of a bad rap from Villa fans, and it’s one that (in my eyes) is pretty undeserved. Sure, the Italian brand never had the glitz or glamour that Nike brought to the table, but then again, Villa also weren’t a glitzy or glamoury club during any of the time we trotted out in Macron gear. One of the neat things when Villa was with Nike was that the club routinely got unique kits, and Macron continued that opportunity for the Villa.
I’d hate to see the day when we wear the same teamwear kits as Scunthorpe United.
But more than that, Macron straight-up put in good effort after good effort, especially with the home kits. I never thought they put a foot wrong for us there — I’ll always especially love the 2013-14 home kit — and they routinely brought hooped socks to our Villa kits, something I’ve dearly come to love over the last four seasons.
Remember how, four years ago, we glowed in the dark? Or the lovely white-and-blackcurrant quartered away kit from three seasons past? You know, the one Tony Moon scored the greatest goal since 1982 in?
For four years, Villa fans could count on the fact that they’d at least look nice in defeat, that for everything else we were ridiculed for, our kits weren’t one of them. Sure, we didn’t have glitz or glamour these last few years, but we always had class — and Macron made sure we looked like it every week trotting out on the pitch. For that, thank you.
And welcome, Under Armour. From my point of view, you’ve got big shoes to fill — and by all indications, you’re gonna do just fine here.