Pink jersey debut
Things get tough for the DFB team for the first time against Oranje
March 26, 2024, 10:51 a.m
Will Frankfurt am Main shine in pink in the evening? The DFB team is playing with the new jerseys for the first time, which have caused a lot of excitement. It was immediately a bestseller at Adidas and national coach Julian Nagelsmann was also happy.
Now things are getting brightly colorful for the national team, even if Julian Nagelsmann’s international debut in the colorful European Championship jersey is only a marginal aspect. “I’m not wearing it,” joked the national coach before the national soccer team’s first appearance in pink and purple against the Dutch Oranje team in Frankfurt/Main (8.45 p.m./RTL and in the ntv.de live ticker).
“Orange against pink is colorful,” said Nagelsmann with a smile, “that’s official.” In the away jerseys, the home game will be the last test before the European Championship squad nomination in May, where Nagelsmann will decide on his 23 tournament players. In the 2-0 away win in France, Germany wore their new home jersey – the hosts had their choice of color. In Frankfurt, the DFB selection has now chosen pink.
With this color, Germany’s footballers are following a trend, says color researcher Axel Buether. Men who wear pink appear open, “to a certain extent simply interested in an open society” and “a communicative and friendly attitude.” The choice of color for the national team’s new pink and purple away jersey has caused controversy. The 57-year-old color researcher said that the fact that some people find the choice of color unsuitable for the jersey could have something to do with what they associate with the color.
Pink has been a no-go in sports for a long time
Actually, the color pink is very strongly associated with delicacy, vulnerability and sensitivity and therefore more “with the fairer sex,” said Buether. Pink was therefore “a no-go for a long time” in sports, as men’s sports are more associated with masculine characteristics such as strength, aggressiveness and competitive behavior.
The color pink used to be reserved for boys. The signal color red was considered a sign of masculinity, which is why the “little red” – i.e. pink – was worn by boys. That only changed in the last century. To this day, gender stereotypes through colors persist in society.
“Colors have immense meaning for people,” explained Buether. How a color works can be explained, among other things, by how it is perceived in nature. For example, the blue of the sky always appears cool, wide and open. Red, on the other hand, is perceived as warm, lively and sometimes aggressive or sexy. Added to this is the cultural significance of the colors, for example the post office is associated with yellow or Ferrari with red. Pink, on the other hand, is strongly associated with the Barbie doll, among other things.
Nagelsmann praises “courageous decision”
Colors are also important in football. “Of course, every team has a specific color code, and the fans use that in the stadium,” said Buether. “This allows them to provide maximum support to their team.” At many football clubs you can see the color blue or warning colors from black, yellow to red. “For a long time there was actually little to no pink.”
Despite this – or precisely because of that? – the jersey has become a bestseller within a very short time. The sales figures, the emotional ratings from the fans and the reach “speak for themselves,” said Adidas spokesman Oliver Brüggen and emphasized: “We are happy and looking euphorically towards UEFA EURO 2024.”
Nagelsmann is also satisfied: “I like it, I think it’s a brave decision,” he said about the choice of color – while still keeping the sport in mind. “There have been studies on goalkeepers; if they have brightly colored jerseys, the goal becomes smaller and smaller. Maybe the gap for the opponent’s pass becomes smaller if we have a colorful jersey.”