How Clubs Got Their Colours: Juventus

Juventus of Turin is Italy’s most popular and successful football club. Thirty-five times national champions, twice European champions, three times Uefa Cup winners and a Cup-Winners’ Cup to boot.

All this silverware was achieved in the famous black and white stripes, sported by the likes of Andrea Pirlo, Roberto Baggio, Michel Platini, Zbigniew Boniek, Gaetano Scirea and Zinadine Zidane.

But how did La Vecchia Signora (The Old Lady) end up wearing those famous shirts?

It’s not all black and white

When the Sport Club Juventus was formed in 1897, the team played in white shirts and black shorts, then a pink shirt and black tie, apparently due to an error. By 1903 the shirts had faded so much that Juve asked English teammate John Savage if he had any shirt supplier contacts.

He did. A Notts County fan, who were at the time a domestic force in England. County themselves had only recently switched to black and white from black and amber hoops.

The black and white hoops were shipped out to Turin and gave the club is nickname i bianconeri (the black-and-whites)

In recent seasons, Juventus FC as is now known has used a pink second shirt as a nod to its history.