Leeds fans shouldn’t get too suspicious – GAME OF THE PEOPLE

There was a time when Leeds United played in red away from home. In those days it was not a cardinal sin for players to wear a color associated with another club or county. Unless Leeds adopt a monochrome color scheme, they will face the same problem no matter what color they splash on their shirts, which really suggests that the current angst of some of the club’s fans is unnecessary and vaguely ridiculous .

Leeds played in gold and blue before Don Revie, as a tribute to the great Real Madrid, decided the club should change to white. The current neurosis is that red identifies as Manchester United (or Liverpool). This is quite a modern interruption from the fans. Back in the day, if they had blue (which they also used), it was Chelsea, a team they hated in the 1960s and 1970s. So it seems pretty crazy that red and yellow, the predominant colors of Red Bull, the club’s minority shareholder, should be seen as definitive no-go areas.

Leeds were probably happy to take Red Bull’s money, even if fans may be nervous that their club could become part of Red Bull’s multi-club model. Surely Red Bull could do no worse than some of the people who have run the club and its ups and downs since the 1970s?

Leeds were always going to have the Red Bull logo somewhere on their kit, but there must have been occasions when the color red appeared somewhere on LUFC merchandise (Packard Bell perhaps)? Is the real issue one of pantones or is it a constant reminder of the club’s relationship with Red Bull, arguably one of the most successful football portfolio managers in the world? Skeptical fans should probably worry more about the 49ers.

The truth is Leeds United are the type of institution Red Bull could do with. Leeds is potentially a huge club (possibly the 7th) in a big city that is also an important cog in industrial/economic Britain. Leeds could benefit from Red Bull’s culture of developing young players and cross-trading (like it or not). But it would seem unlikely at this point that they will become RB Leeds to line up with Leipzig and Salzburg, key components of the Red Bull football network.

Football is too often held back by history. There are a number of aspects of a club’s culture that fans consider untouchable: club colours; stage; Name; and badge. Leeds played with the crest at the back (remember the smiley face badge?) and their colors, as discussed, weren’t always white. The legendary Revie might not have been able to get away with white if he had tried in the 2010s. This current situation is not about changing a shirt, it’s just about sponsorship, the Leeds United shirt remains white, their corporate identity. Red Bull’s ID is largely built around the color red.

Just imagine if a club limited their commercial partners to be more compatible with their color palette. Currently, they wouldn’t be happy with the color schemes of Coca-Cola, KIA, Virgin, Oracle or even the San Francisco 49ers. From the looks of it, the yellow away shirt will be more popular with the Elland Road faithful this season.

Published by Neil Fredrik Jensen

Game of the People was founded in 2012 and is ranked among the top 100 soccer websites by various sources. The site consistently wins awards for its work across a wide range of topics. View all posts by Neil Fredrik Jensen