The Best 2000s Football Shirts: The Next Retro Wave

Every generation gets nostalgic for the shirts it grew up with. The 1990s have had their moment, and the shirts people loved then have become the staples of retro collecting. The next group arriving at that point is the 2000s: the decade of the Invincibles, the Galacticos, Istanbul and a World Cup in Japan and South Korea.

This guide makes the case for the decade, lists nine shirts tied to the seasons people still talk about, and covers what to look for if you want to buy one. Every season here has a story, and the story is a large part of why the shirt is worth having.

Why the 2000s, and Why Now

This is our opinion, not a market forecast, and nobody can promise what any shirt will do. But the logic is easy to follow, and some simple arithmetic helps.

A shirt from 2005 is now more than twenty years old. Someone who was twelve and glued to the Champions League final that year is in their early thirties today, with a job, their own money and a clear idea of what they wish they had owned as a kid. That is exactly the point at which people start collecting the shirts of their youth, and it is how the 1990s became retro in the first place.

The decade also had a distinct look. Bolder collars, technical fabrics, big sponsors and the first wave of tighter fits make shirts from these years easy to tell apart from the 1990s and from the modern game. That clear identity is what makes a period feel retro.

The Nine at a Glance

Nine 2000s Classics

1. Real Madrid, 2001/02

The Galacticos era. Zinedine Zidane arrived that summer in what was then a world-record transfer, and Real Madrid went on to win the Champions League, beating Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 in the final at Hampden Park, with a famous volley from Zidane the decisive moment. It was also the club's centenary year. Adidas made the shirts, and white shirts from this period carry a lot of history.

Worth knowing: The season was a mixed one domestically, since Madrid finished third in La Liga and lost the Copa del Rey final, so the Champions League is what the shirt is remembered for.

2. Brazil, 2002 World Cup

Brazil beat Germany 2-0 in the final in Yokohama on 30 June 2002, with Ronaldo scoring both goals, to win a fifth World Cup, which is still a record. Nike made the shirt, in the yellow the team is famous for. For many fans it is the defining shirt of the decade, and a Brazil shirt from that tournament rarely looks out of place on a wall.

3. Arsenal, 2003/04

The Invincibles. Arsenal played all 38 Premier League games without losing, finishing with 26 wins and 12 draws, and the title was clinched with a 2-2 draw at Tottenham on 25 April 2004. The unbeaten run reached 49 league matches, and nobody had gone through a top-flight season unbeaten since Preston North End in 1888/89. Nike made the shirt, the home kit was the red with white sleeves everyone knows, and the away shirt was a retro yellow design based on the one worn in the 1979 FA Cup final.

Worth knowing: Arsenal did not win another league title for 22 years after this one, which adds to how special the 2003/04 season feels in hindsight.

4. Greece, Euro 2004

The biggest surprise in the history of the European Championship. Greece had never won a match at a major tournament before 2004, and some bookmakers priced them at 150-1 before it began. They beat Portugal 1-0 in the final in Lisbon on 4 July 2004, with a header from Angelos Charisteas, under their German manager Otto Rehhagel. A shirt from that tournament is a reminder that football can still surprise us.

5. Liverpool, 2004/05

Istanbul. Liverpool were 3-0 down to AC Milan at half-time in the Champions League final on 25 May 2005, scored three times in the second half to make it 3-3, and won 3-2 on penalties, with Jerzy Dudek making crucial saves under Rafael Benitez. The shirt was made by Reebok, which supplied Liverpool's kit from 1996 to 2006, with Carlsberg across the front, a sponsor Liverpool wore from 1992 to 2010.

Worth knowing: Special editions were produced after the final, including Istanbul 2005 versions, so ask a seller exactly which shirt you are looking at.

6. Chelsea, 2004/05

José Mourinho's first season ended with Chelsea's first league title in 50 years. They won it with 95 points, 12 clear of Arsenal, and conceded just 15 league goals, with records that still stand. The title was sealed with a 2-0 win at Bolton on 30 April 2005. Umbro made the shirts.

7. Barcelona, 2005/06

Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto'o led Barcelona to the La Liga title, 12 points clear of Real Madrid, and to the Champions League, beating Arsenal 2-1 in the final in Paris with Eto'o among the scorers. Nike made the shirt. The blue and claret stripes carried no front sponsor at the time, since the club's first, UNICEF, arrived the following season, which makes a clean 2005/06 shirt look very different from later ones.

8. Italy, 2006 World Cup

Italy beat France 5-3 on penalties in Berlin on 9 July 2006 after a 1-1 draw, in a final remembered for Zidane's red card in his last match. The shirt was made by Puma, in the blue of the Azzurri, with a clean, close-fitting design, and it is a good example of the decade's move towards tighter, more technical kits.

9. Manchester United, 2007/08

United won the Premier League, their tenth, and the Champions League, beating Chelsea 6-5 on penalties in Moscow on 21 May 2008 after a 1-1 draw. Nike made the shirt. A shirt from that double-winning season sits comfortably in any English collection.

The shirts people ask for are almost always the ones they watched as kids. That is why a decade tends to become collectable once its fans have grown up.

- Jamie King, co-founder, Mystery Jersey King

What to Look For When Buying

Shirts from the 2000s are old enough to show their age and recent enough that fakes and remakes are common. These are the things worth checking.

• Sponsor and badge prints. Printed sponsors and heat-pressed badges on shirts of this age can crack, peel or fade, so look closely at close-up photos.
• Fabric condition. Check for bobbling, stretching, collar wear, stains and fading.
• The fit. Cuts changed a lot during the decade, so compare measurements rather than relying on the size on the label.
• Original, reissue or remake. Some of these designs have been remade, so ask which one you are buying.
• Special editions. Tournament and final shirts often come in several versions, as with Istanbul 2005, so check you know exactly which one is on offer.
• Genuine tags. Fakes exist for the best-known shirts of the period. Our guides to the most faked football shirts and how manufacturers mark a genuine shirt explain what to look for, and how to tell if a retro football shirt is genuine covers older shirts in detail.
• Aftercare. Older prints are delicate, so see how to store and display a football shirt collection and 15 tips to cultivate your football shirt collection.

Where to Start

If you are not sure, begin with the shirt tied to a moment you remember. Everything else follows from that. If you are a Liverpool fan, Istanbul is an obvious starting point. If you love the Premier League, the Invincibles are hard to beat. And if you care more about design than results, look for the decade's bolder collars and big sponsors on any club you like.

For other eras, see our guide to the best European club shirts to own, our list of the best retro football shirts of all time or the retro football shirts collection. For a surprise, a mystery football shirt box delivers one genuine shirt, with the club and era chosen for you. Explore our full range of mystery football shirts to see how it works.

Frequently Asked Questions