The Red Stars' kits and iconicity

I'm really excited to share this post with everyone. It's written by my friend, Ted Harwood. He too, is a big footy (soccer) lover. You can check out other pieces by Ted & friends at their shared blog, Running Downhill (topics range from cinema to sports).
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On a global basis, no sport's uniforms have a larger financial or cultural impact than do soccer uniforms.  Just ask the giant piles of cash that Real Madrid raked in after the Zidane/Beckham/Kaká/Ronaldo signings, the numerous different blogs dedicated solely to kits current, future, and historical, and the goalscorers who kiss the badge sewn onto the front of their shirt as they wheel away in joy.  Uniforms mean a lot in soccer, but supporters often have to face the facts that their teams' kits are often somewhat questionable as fashion statements.

Thankfully, the WPS, and especially the Red Stars, have absolutely nailed the whole kit thing for their inaugural season.  The WPS Puma kits are all simple, uncluttered designs, well-tailored, and look sharp as heck.  Only the Chicago kits deviate significantly beyond the solid-color design, though, and they do it in a way that is more than just pleasing to the eye (which they are).

The flag of the City of Chicago is one of the most recognizable symbols of the city, but (and this bit is maybe crucial) only really to the citizens of the city itself.  Anyone living in the city has seen the sky blue and white flag with the four red stars hanging on the front of every building downtown, tattooed on their friend's arm, and flying in front of every courthouse and city building, but most people outside of the city probably have never seen it before (unless they're WPS fans!)  The Red Stars' kit manages to maintain the simple, not-busy design of all the WPS kits while simultaneously injecting a sharp, instantly recognizable symbol that has the power to catalyze home support in a way that, say, the Boston Breaker's plain blue shirts cannot, slick as they look.

The new England kits and the new Man City kits are bringing back a more tailored, simple look, which is most welcome after nearly two decades of baggy and nigh-horrifying kits (athletic uniforms for both men and women should be about underlining and reinforcing the idea that these folks are ATHLETES.  They are in shape, they are healthy; why are we putting them in size 60 garbage bags?).  The Red Stars' kits seem to be part of this growing trend in soccer towards sensible kit design, and for my money (probably literally, pretty soon), they are the best-looking uniforms in American sports right now.