Why Roma played in white jersey and red shorts

Last night, AS Roma entered the pitch after the league match against Torino wearing an unusual combination of jersey and shorts. Actually, the Giallorossi should have entered the away match at the Stadio Olimpico wearing the ivory-coloured away jersey by adidas, and the shorts would have contrasted with Toro's white home jerseys. Serie A rules, in fact, prohibit both teams from wearing the same colour jersey and shorts, so as not to confuse both the spectators and the match officials.

Normally, teams opt for the third jersey in such cases, but that was not presented by the Giallorossi, so AS Roma had to mix the two jerseys used so far this season. So the white away jersey and the red home shorts, the perfect counterpart to Torino's Granata jersey with white shorts. A choice that did not excite the Roma public, especially because the two jerseys worn did not have the same graphic profile. For the home jersey, adidas chose the Gratton Lupetto, while the away version bore the ASR crest. The three stripes of the German brand were also in different colours, once in yellow and once in black, which made for a striking contrast.

It's certainly not the first time a team has had to change their jersey at the last minute to comply with league regulations, but the design adidas chose for Roma this season meant there was no such continuity. While football jerseys are indeed becoming more of a lifestyle element suitable for off-field wear, they are perhaps losing a functional graphic identity for use during matches that also follows the strict regulations of national and international competitions.