There’s something about a pinstripe that immediately makes a football shirt feel a little smarter.
Dundalk have gone all in on them for a particularly significant celebration, marking 100 years of League of Ireland membership with a special edition shirt created alongside local supporters and creatives Killian Walsh of Grandson Design Studio and Sean Cotter, with Zoma.
The starting point is appropriately traditional.
A crisp white base celebrates Dundalk’s famous Lilywhites identity, while a red alternate badge provides the strongest hit of colour.
Then come the 26 silver pinstripes.
They give the shirt that refined, slightly throwback appearance that pinstripes seem particularly good at producing. Silver is an obvious choice for a centennial celebration too, bringing the anniversary into the design without needing to plaster enormous commemorative graphics across it.
There’s plenty more hidden away.
A patch towards the bottom of the shirt details the club’s honours across its century in the League of Ireland, while the contrasting one-button collar hides another piece of history. Inside the neck are images of former Dundalk players lifting silverware through the decades.
Even the Zoma branding has been kept minimal, allowing the crest, stripes and anniversary details to remain the focus.
It’s exactly what you want from a celebratory shirt. It looks back without becoming overloaded by nostalgia.
It also makes us wonder about pinstripes in general.
They’re one of those football shirt features that can completely change a plain base without really changing it at all. Enough detail to give a shirt character, but rarely enough to make it feel busy.
Pinstripe football shirts: yes or no?
We’re firmly in the yes camp.
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