BlogLab

In recent years, each new batch of NWSL kits has occupied a wide range of stylistic choices — from bold looks to the plainest of the plain. That trend continues this year with a set of kits in which some daringly forge new ground and others, well, don’t. Black kits continue to be popular, with varying results, and there was clearly a concerted move away from white shorts this season, which should be celebrated. 

So which new kits win the seal of approval from our reviewers, writers Meg Linehan and Steph Yang and editor Brooks Peck, and which spark debate? Let’s run through each of the new looks for 2023 and find out. 

To recap: All the kits that were new for 2022

Angel City FC: The “Represent” kit

Steph: I like the embroidered crest and a lot of the finer details, like the graffiti-style “Volemos” on the back designed by local business owner Rachel Gomez. The patch program is cool too in how it really ties in lots of aspects of the community. But it does feel a little bit like they got lost in those fine details and when you zoom out, it’s kind of a nice gray-toned jersey that nevertheless doesn’t pop like their 2022 “Daylight” jersey that had pink, white, and black and the palm tree pattern. 

Los Ángeles es más que un lugar. We are the sum of infinite parts: diverse cultures, neighborhoods, and individuals united by the city we call home. REPRESENT L.A. like never before.https://t.co/EuPwNxnoFE pic.twitter.com/vCllxHGYgl

— Angel City FC (@weareangelcity) March 16, 2023

Meg: Good ideas here, I’m not all that sold on the actual execution. It’s a jersey I want to like as a whole, but I agree with Steph: the concept doesn’t immediately come through for me because I don’t think the details immediately add up visually. Maybe going more abstract with the design might have been the solution? The city outline worked for Chicago, but here I don’t think the shape of Los Angeles translates as well to the front of a jersey. 

The sol rosa (also known as pink) collar, side panels and socks are all perfect, though. So are the patches — we’ve seen these really work to complement designs before (Orlando, for example), and it’s an easy way to create additional storytelling around a kit.

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Brooks: Too much gray for a club with such a vibrant vibe. I agree that the Los Angeles map design doesn’t really permanentlywork, but I do love the patch idea. Maybe the whole kit should have utilized all the different patch designs, but maybe that’s too much of a “why don’t they just make the whole plane out of the black box?” idea. 

Chicago Red Stars: The “Foundation” kit

Foundation: (noun) the action of establishing an institution or organization on a permanent basis.
Introducing the “Foundation” kit. pic.twitter.com/mMHSFt4gyp

— Chicago Red Stars (@chicagoredstars) March 15, 2023

Meg: Black jerseys are really on trend, as discussed previously, but Chicago really set a standard here — and I also think surpassed their previous attempt at a black kit easily (no offense to the “Momentum” kit, but it was doing a lot). The art deco vibes are on point. Mal Swanson is going to score roughly ten million goals in this kit and look baller as hell doing it. I am about to be the controversial one in this kit review by defending the new Portland kit, but Chicago is the winner of the 2023 kit releases for me.

Steph: I really like it, but I’m predisposed to like all-black jerseys. This one has a design that isn’t boring but also isn’t too busy, and Chicago will always have a huge advantage in being able to slap those red stars on almost anything to make it pop. 

Brooks: I agree. It’s so easy to make a black kit that’s just really boring, but they struck a nice balance here with design elements that stand out (I’m a sucker for an art deco vibe) but in a way that is also very wearable for players and fans alike. Well done. 

Houston Dash: “La Estrella”

Steph: Well…it’s orange. And I appreciate they tried to give it a little bit of pattern so that it’s not just flat orange. The release claims that’s “a broad spectrum of orange hues” which did make me do a mental “blood orange, shut up, it’s red.” Honestly, it’s fine. I do worry that with the black shorts it’s giving Halloween but it’s a color combo that works and will continue to work. 

Meg: When you get a very zoomed-in view of the jersey, the texture of those “orange hues” does look pretty nice, but I actually think the slightly exaggerated version of this kit that they’re using in FIFA 23 is the sweet spot. I just went back to the last primary orange kit they released in 2021 and the same sentiment once again applies: “At the end of the day, this is a Dash jersey.” We know what we’re getting: a whole lotta orange.

We're in the game🤘

Play with us starting March 15th, exclusively in #FIFA23 #HoldItDown x @EASPORTSFIFA pic.twitter.com/tGzu4t1JT2

— Houston Dash (@HoustonDash) March 6, 2023

Brooks: Wow, yes, the FIFA 23 version (of the kit, at least) is great. Once again, real life fails to match my FIFA video game ideals. 

NJ/NY Gotham FC

Steph: I’m still going back and forth on the blue zig-zag pattern but it is visually striking without being overwhelming. My main negative is how they had to interrupt the pattern for the front-of-jersey sponsor but that’s show business. And again, it’s a black kit, and I’m a sucker for a black jersey with a big splash of bright color on it. 

Brooks: I like it, and to your point, Steph, I think the sponsor branding kind of plays into the design better than many would. I still like Gotham’s 2020 home kit more, but I’m glad they’ve gone back to the zig-zags. 

Meg: I think this kit is fine and looks better on actual humans, but I think Gotham FC wins for the most ridiculous descriptions of the new design. For example, did you know the gradient on the sash element “captures the impassioned and unrelentless spirit that epitomizes the people of New Jersey and New York”? I know these sorts of things are inherently a little silly, but… come on.

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Brooks: Seems like someone was a little too “unrelentless” in their word choice there. 

North Carolina Courage

Fresh Kits🥶❄️

Get yours here: https://t.co/97D5xUmex2 pic.twitter.com/45X9h579zC

— NC Courage (@TheNCCourage) January 30, 2023

Steph: Yaaaawwwnnn. It’s a white jersey. I like the detailing when you get close up, but that’s part of the Nike template and not unique to the team. I love the holographic badge — more holographic badges in general thanks — but it is, in the end, a white jersey. 

Meg: On year three of NWSL kit reviews, I have decided to stop having expectations of the North Carolina Courage. I don’t love this for me (or them), but I’m choosing to think of my absolute delight if they ever actually decide to finally go for it on a new kit in the future. 

Brooks: To paraphrase “This is Spinal Tap,” “It’s so white that it’s like, how much more white could it be? And the answer is none. None more white.”

OL Reign: The “Purpose” kit

Meg: It’s a winner for me — though it does feel like it’s the same approach that Nike used for U.S. Soccer’s dazzle camo kits, just with a little bit of a twist in the pattern and obviously, going with Reign’s colorway. I do wish they had used the Nike template that has the solid collar rather than the weird triangle insert, because a red collar, red cuffs on the sleeve and a red Nike swoosh would have looked so nice with this pattern. But that’s getting into nitpicking territory.

Introducing the Purpose kit, the club’s primary kit for 2023. pic.twitter.com/V8DoPrAgWD

— OL Reign PR (@OLReignPR) March 17, 2023

Steph: I like this kit a lot. The pattern on the jersey is really nice and the Reign continues to have the best front-of-jersey sponsor in the league. Maybe it’s not fair to use a jersey sponsor for a design category but you can’t deny it just looks nice. 

Brooks: Shirt sponsor absolutely counts when assessing kit designs — it can be a make-or-break element! As for the rest of this one, yeah, it’s unanimous: this is great. I get the dazzle camo kit comparison, but this also reminds me of Chelsea’s 2021-22 home kit…except better. The red-collar triangle thing works for me here. I think a full red collar might have been too overpowering. 

Orlando Pride: The “Highway Woman” kit

Steph: The story behind this jersey is such a lovely one, giving a Black female Florida artist her due. Mary Ann Carroll’s story certainly deserves to be told and her art to be admired, but I just feel like it’s a little bit underwhelming in its execution. When you look at Carroll’s art it comes with such a strong sense of place and time, with an incredibly vivid palette. The jersey doesn’t really do the same with its faint brushstroke pattern. 

Driven by history. Painting our future.

Introducing The Highway Woman Kit presented by @orlandohealth pic.twitter.com/D8samI6Gv2

— Orlando Pride (@ORLPride) March 22, 2023

Meg: I think if I saw this one, without the context of the story Orlando wants to tell with this jersey, I would be thinking, “Yeah, that’s an Orlando Pride kit, sure.” The struggle here is there’s so much narrative being packed in, and then you just sort of get this kind of ‘90s-looking paintbrush effect on the kit, and it doesn’t add up. The detail of the Royal Poinciana tree in the embellishment is a nice touch, and it’s easy to just sit here from a distance and say maybe the design could have been centered around that instead, but I do wonder what that kit could have looked like. Either way, I don’t see the texture on this jersey really coming through when we eventually watch games on TV or screens.

Brooks: That’s my issue. All that meaning, but they don’t let it shine through. Such a missed opportunity. Now I’m depressed. 

Orlando Pride: Plus a revised “Luna” kit

So we heard you all had some opinions about our Luna kits 👀 pic.twitter.com/ivOvqUgwd2

— Orlando Pride (@ORLPride) February 28, 2023

Steph: This is still the 2022 Luna kit, but obviously with the extremely important update that the numbers are now black instead of silver that immediately became illegible the moment you tried to watch the players on a screen. I still like the overall concept with everyone’s girlfriend, the moon, and I do want to again shout out the Pride switching to black shorts so players don’t need to worry about menstrual issues in white shorts. 

Brooks: OK, they made the numbers stand out more, now do the rest of it. As I said last year, they just need to turn up the volume on this across the board. 

Meg: Listen, I have one of these with the silver numbers and it looks very cool in person for a normal human to wear but NOT for people trying to watch an actual soccer match and trying to figure out who’s doing what. Thank you, Orlando, I know you wanted the sassy video but this was necessary for all of us.

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Portland Thorns FC

Steph: Oh boy. Oh, dear. We could all individually write our own full-length article on this one. And you know what? That means the Thorns won. Even if you hate it, you now have an opinion on it. The Thorns basically said, “You have lost The Game.” I actually really like the dagger through the embroidered centered patch and the attempt at evoking some old-school sailor tattoos. It’s just, you know, all the other stuff. This one feels like a good candidate for the type of jersey you get signed then framed and never actually wear.

Bold. Unique. Undeniable.

This is Portland. Introducing The Thorns ’23 kit. 🌹#BAONPDX pic.twitter.com/4UeTPEtWWg

— Portland Thorns FC (@ThornsFC) March 14, 2023

Meg: I think we are forgetting how bad the previous Thorns secondary kits were, which looked like bad Chicago Red Stars away kits. Pretty much anything is an upgrade, and yes, Many Decisions Were Made on the new secondary kits. Now again, I do plan to defend these, but one caveat first: I understand the Ed Hardy references, and I am mad that Ed Hardy has basically ruined any attempts at leaning into old-school tattoo designs. 

Any kit that makes me like both a centrally placed crest and that terrible neckline design that most Nike kits have is a miracle of design. The green shorts are amazing, too. I think I actually like these more because of the backlash. Am I drinking the ‘Portland as NWSL villains’ narrative Kool-Aid now? I guess so, but I stand by my opinion that these are not nearly as bad as everyone is saying.

Brooks: I’m with you, Meg. I like this one too. It looks like Portland to me (maybe a bit Portlandia), and I like that they tried something boldly different. It’s unique, it will forever be seared in our minds as a Portland Thorns kit, and I honestly think future generations will look back on this one fondly. Once we develop the technology to erase Ed Hardy from our memory, this kit will be beloved. 

Racing Louisville FC: The “Houndstooth” kit

Meg: We’ve got another winner here, to the point where I will say these are the best of the Louisville kits so far, and their first primary kit really set a bar. The houndstooth pattern in Racing colors works so well, and despite how simple it is, Louisville really did well to tell a story with their design. Maybe I’m a little biased because I covered this one, but this is definitely a jersey I really feel needs to be added to my NWSL collection.

A new generation of women is taking the reins.

Introducing our 2023 primary jersey, the Houndstooth Kit. pic.twitter.com/GZjxQn8XLn

— Racing Louisville FC (@RacingLouFC) March 22, 2023

This is not entirely related to the jerseys, but Paige Monaghan (a) did have really good, interesting things to say about the new kit and its connection to the community and how that makes her feel as a new player on the team, but (b) has come up with one of the most delightful NWSL catchphrases ever in “Go Big Purp” so Louisville needs a T-shirt of that ASAP.

Steph: I think this is my winner for the season. Purple is always a great choice for a jersey and the houndstooth instantly hits you in the face but not in a too-busy way. It’s the kind of jersey where people will go, “oh yeah 2023 was the year they did houndstooth.” 

Brooks: Alright, I guess I’ll be the downer here and say I’m on the fence with this one. It’s a lot of houndstooth. Like being consumed by a country club sofa. It’s growing on me though, and maybe seeing it in a match setting will win me over, but in the meantime, I think Racing Louisville’s inaugural home kit is still their best.  

San Diego Wave FC

New threads rolling in 🌊 Introducing the 2023 Wave FC jerseys 🤝 @KPSCALnews pic.twitter.com/EX321S6KNJ

— San Diego Wave FC (@sandiegowavefc) March 6, 2023

Steph: They got the same white template as NC and the blue jersey’s lighter color detailing is giving WPS-era dated vibes. WHERE is the ambitious ocean-sunset-themed jersey using those fantastic synth-wave colors? 

Meg: This is year two of us begging the Wave to lean all the way in on its color scheme! You have one of the most distinct crests and color schemes in the NWSL. Embrace it! Please! 

Brooks: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! How dare you waste such an awesome badge on such blah kits, San Diego? This is egregious. The league has to start docking them points until they rectify this matter. These kits have ruined my year. 

Washington Spirit

Meg: It’s essentially a placeholder year, so reviewing these doesn’t really feel like a legit exercise. The Spirit gets a pass for essentially punting on a real kit design until they can do the real work around their brand, but my expectations are high for a new-look D.C. NWSL team where everything is up for grabs, especially under the ownership of Michele Kang. 

Setting new rules with a new kit 🖤 pic.twitter.com/60tLjMSGCe

— Washington Spirit (@WashSpirit) March 2, 2023

Brooks: Yeah, calling these kits “daring,” as they do in the reveal video, is a no. 

Steph: It’s a white jersey and a black jersey. The one redeeming thing on the black jersey, other than it being a black jersey, is that holographic badge, although on the team’s website, it photographs more golden and looks way more gorgeous than straight-up holographic. Honestly, they should consider that golden metallic concept as a variant instead of a one-off as a lead into their “rebrand in progress.” 

Brooks: How about a kit made entirely out of that metallic material? Like a Mandalorian armor kit or something. Now that’s daring. Let’s do that. 

ncG1vNJzZmismJqutbTLnquim16YvK57k2xraWhia3xzfJFsZmlrX2eAcLrWrKNmo5mperOx1aKcsKtdZ31zf44%3D