Sky Bet League One 2019 - 2020
Three members of this division faced severe crisis at the start of the season. Coventry's dispute over their continued use of the Ricoh Stadium has led them to a ground share arrangement with Birmingham City. Should they fail to negotiate a return to their home city they may utimately face expulsion from the EFL. Bolton were on the verge of liquidation before the administrators finally confirmed the sale to Football Ventures Ltd. Bury's membership was withdrawn by the EFL board on 27 August after the club's owner repeatedly failed to meet deadlines to prove that funds were available to get through the season and a takeover bid collapsed at the last minute.
Matches were suspended on 13 March due to the Covid-19 pandemic. On 9 June the member clubs voted to curtail the current season because without paying spectators, playing thei remianing fixtures would not be financially viable. Positions were decided on a points-per-game basis but calls by some clubs to rule out relegation were overuled. Play-offs to determine the last promotions spot went ahead in July. Due to the vacancy caused by the expulsion of Bury, only three clubs were relegated to League Two.
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Premier League | Championship | League One | League Two
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Designer: Adidas
Sponsor: What More UK Ltd
Stanley are retaining both of their strips from last season and the red outfit is now unchanged over three seasons. The change strip is worn with navy shorts when necessary. The third strip is also recycled from two years ago.
(Arthur Cowburn)
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Designer: Errea
Sponsor: Blackpool Council
The toxic regime of the Oyston family was ended, to the delight of supporters, in February by the High Court who placed the club in receivership in order to repay the debt owed to former director, Valeri Belokon. The new kits are a fitting tribute to two popular historical strips while the local council has stepped in to sponsor the team shirts which now feature the logos of their Tourism Dept and Health Initiative. Due to the "special nature" of the insolvency event, the EFL has decided not to impose a 12-point penalty this season.
(2nd socks to be confirmed.)
(Matthew Ross, Peter Gillatt)
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August-October
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From October
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August-October
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From October
Designer: Hummel/Infinity Apparel
Sponsor: Home Bargains
Bolton went into administration in May and have had 12 points deducted for the current season. Because of the dire financial situation (the players and staff have not been paid since March) a kit deal could not be arranged so temporary kits were bought for the opening fixtures pending the delayed completion of a takeover by Football Ventures which went through on 28 August. Leeds company, Infinity Apparel were commissioned to produce the new strips which were delivered one month later.
(Bryn Lunt, Alex Heywood)
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Designer: Macron
Sponsor: Utilita, The Prince's Trust
Rovers are wearing a revival of their 1988-90 strip complete with shadow stripes and solid blue sleeves. It's a shame they have opted for blue shorts instead of the original white. Navy may seem a surprising choice for the alternative but as Plymouth have proved, a different shade of the main colour can work especially when one of the kits has plenty of contrasting white. Only fifty replicas of the third kit are being made and these wil be auctioned off at the end of the season with the proceeds going to the Prince's Trust.
(Steven Thomas, Detenator Ninety, Ben Gershaw)
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Designer: Tag
Sponsor: Prestec
Burton have held over their change strip and introduced a new first strip that closely resembles their 2017-18 outfit. The principle difference is the subtle yellow flecking on the raglan sleeves and side of the shorts.
(Mark E Mosedale)
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Designer: Hummel
Sponsor: Allsopp & Allsopp
Coventry's troubles seem endless. Unable to reach agreement with their new landlord, Wasps Rugby, over continuing to play at the Ricoh Arena, they will share St Andrews with Birmingham City this season. On the other hand their new technical sponsor, Hummel, has come up with a revival of the iconic halved shirt worn in the late 80s that will go down a storm. The alternative is the same design in a delicate shade of primrose and navy blue while the third strip plays tribute to The Specials and 2 Tone music.
(Joshua Hopkins, Mahdi Askor, Detenator Ninety, Bill Craven)
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Charity
29 Dec v Sunderland
Designer: Elite Pro Sport
Sponsor: LNER, CALM
Now that their contract with FBT has expired, Doncaster have turned to a local sportswear supplier for their new strips. The first choice strip is delightfully straightforward, something of a relief after the wacky FBT designs. It was hinted that the change strip would be based on their first ever outfit. While it does borrow the blue and yellow from that original shirt, sadly, it does not feature cross-belts.
The Club Doncaster Foundation logo is placed where the manufacturer's trademark is normally found.
(David King)
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Designer: Hummel
Sponsor: BES Utilities
Fleetwood's strips are unchanged from last season but they are now produced by a novel manufacturing process that it is claimed involves no water consumption and no waste water discharges (normally 25 litres of fresh water are required to dye one shirt. ZEROH2O, as it is known, is being rolled out by Hummel across all its UK club partners this season.
(Detenator Ninety)
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Designer: Macron
Sponsor: MEMS Power Generation
After three seasons during which the Gills have produced kits under their own brand, Macron have picked up the contract. Their matching designs are straightforward enough but undistinguished apart from an image of the white horse of Kent sublimated into the small of the back. The special edition striped kit is retained.
(Chris Matterface, Craig Ridley, Symon Chaplin)
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Designer: Adidas
Sponsor: Magical Vegas
Ipswich find themselves in the third tier for the first time since 1957-58. The red trim has been banished and we have a back-to-basics home strip enlivened by sublimated chevrons. The second strip harks back to 2016-17 which is fine but it's in the new Adidas Stripes template, which is not. The orange strip is held over from last season.
(Kieran Bleasby)
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Designer: Errea
Sponsor: SRP Hire Solutions
Two years after returning to the Football League Lincoln won the League Two title and have risen to the third tier. Errea have come up with a decent interpretation of the traditional red and white stripes with solid red sleeves and black shorts. The limited third kit celebrates Lincoln Day and features the colours of the county flag at the shoulder and the Lincolnshire emblem, the fleur-de-lys, embossed into the fabric.
(Detenator Ninety, David King)
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Designer: Errea
Sponsor: Suzuki
The Dons were promoted last season and have their sights set on having another go in the Championship. As usual, matching designs have been chosen for their three kits and (EFL chairpersons please note) this always looks really smart. The burning question for Don's supporters has for some time been, what the secondary colour is, gold, red or black? For the time being it seems to be gold with red the dominant colour on the change strip. The bright yellow third strip is a refreshing change from the all-black favoured in recent seasons.
(James Blackwell)
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Designer: Puma
Sponsor: Singha
There are no surprises with the latest first choice strip, simply the new Puma flux design in signature yellow and dark blue. On the other hand, the change strip is a stunner.
(James Goss)
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Designer: Nike
Sponsor: Mick George Ltd
As usual The Posh have picked their kit straight out of the Nike catalogue, a minimalist, no-nonsense first strip with white shorts reinstated. The change strip, in black and volt pink, is far more adventurous. Last season's white top was worn at Northampton teamed with black shorts and socks.
(Steven Thomas, Detenator Ninety, Bill Craven)
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Designer: Nike
Sponsor: University of Portsmouth
Red trimmings are added to what is otherwise the usual blue/white/red first kit while the silver grey alternative is rather nice for being unadorned. Purple is an odd choice for a team whose first choice is blue and I believe it was chosen for the third kit because it is the corporate colour of their principle partner, the local university, rather than for any practical purpose.
(Detenator Ninety, David King)
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Designer: Errea
Sponsor: Crown Oil
All three of 'Dales' kits were chosen by supporters. The pink set was narrowly beaten in the poll and given its popularity, the club decided to make it third choice.
(Steven Thomas, Mark Wilbraham, Mahdi Askor)
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Designer: Puma
Sponsor: Embark Group, Mears
The Millers are going up and down like the proverbial fiddler's wotsit and are currently staying in tier three, no doubt a temporary arrangement. The odd thing about this Puma design, which we're seeing quite a lot of, is that it does not appear in their 2019 catalogue. Looks smart though. Furthermore, it can be mixed and matched with the change strip. The white or purple shirts are always worn in away games for sponsorship reasons.
(Detenator Ninety, Joe L)
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Designer: Admiral
Sponsor: Tuffins Supermarkets, Shropshire Homes
Admiral may not be the force they were fifty years ago but they do still produce novel designs. The broad vertical stripe on the first strip harks back to the Shrews' 2005-06 outfit. I'm not sure about the purple change strip, which is too similar to blue to avoid clashes but the EFL have registered them both so there we are. In fact a white shirt was worn when the Shrews travelled to Ipswich.
(Jonathon Moore, Ben Gershaw)
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Designer: Nike
Sponsor: (Paddy Power)
Nike's Legend design is adopted for this season and Southend have signed up for the "Save Our Shirt" promotion.
(Detenator Ninety, Alec Hitchman)
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Designer: Adidas
Sponsor: Children with Cancer UK
Sunderland reached the play-offs but were beaten by Charlton in the Wembley final so they must spend at least one more season in the third tier. The broad stripes on the first choice shirt don't look right for this fine old club and I am sorry to report that once again, Adidas are supplying striped shirts that are plain on the reverse despite the protests of supporters. Betdaq have gifted their shirt sponsorship to a cancer charity after its parent company, GVC, called on the gambling industry to reduce its exposure to local sports fans.
(Robert.H. Mahdi Askor)
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Designer: Puma
Sponsor: Essar Global Fund Ltd
After negotiating the play-offs, Rovers were promoted for the second time in successive seasons. Puma's latest template makes for a smart, traditional first strip and is a lot better than last season's effort. The change strip is purple with a black flux pattern on the shirt.
(Marc Gibbs)
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Designer: Puma
Sponsor: Sports Interactive
The Dons keep their first and second strips for a second season. The new third strip is Puma's flux effect design. While drawing this one I had an inexplicable craving for lime & licorice boiled sweets.
(Tony Sealey, Detenator Ninety)
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Designer: O'Neills
Sponsor: Cherry Red Records, Dormeo
A new yellow change strip is introduced with random triangular patches on the front of the shirt. The first choice kit is held over from last season.
(Ed Goode)
