A symbol you perhaps wouldn’t expect to find flourishing in northern Italy.
Head out onto the waterways surrounding Mantua and amongst the reeds and lush riverbanks you’ll find vast stretches of lotus flowers.
Introduced to the area’s extensive network of waters in the early 20th century, what began as an experiment has grown into one of the city’s most extraordinary natural sights.
Mantova 1911 have now embraced that natural beauty with their latest third kit.
The sponsor might catch you straight away, but it’s the wavy wonder underneath that’s worth looking for.
Deep navy and blue tones run through a rippling design inspired by the waters surrounding the city, home to the fior di loto that have become such an unexpected feature of the Mantuan landscape.
Red and white detailing pulls everything back towards the club itself, lifting colours from Mantova’s traditional identity and providing a sharp contrast against the darker base.
Even the sponsors work surprisingly well.
The ripple effect appears to encroach upon the branding rather than simply disappearing behind it, helping the sponsors feel part of the design rather than something slapped across the top.
Taking the shirt onto the very river it’s paying homage to for the launch completes the story nicely.
Mantua has another rather famous association.
It’s where Romeo is banished after killing Tybalt in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, forced to leave Verona and live in exile away from Juliet.
We’re considerably less inclined to banish this shirt.
Waterways have provided plenty of football shirt inspiration recently, so shall we compare thee to another river-inspired shirt?
Go Ahead Eagles also turned to the waters surrounding their home this season, celebrating the IJssel River with a deep navy third kit featuring golden pinstripes and a sailing ship hidden amongst the design:
Wisła Kraków have since followed the Vistula River with their own swirling blue third shirt:
Yet the lotus flowers give Mantova’s interpretation something rather unexpected.
Football shirts have celebrated rivers, coastlines, mountains, architecture and just about every other element of a club’s surroundings. A landscape of lotus flowers in northern Italy isn’t one we’d have predicted.
So, would you banish this shirt to Mantua?
Or has Mantova found another beauty amongst the city’s famous waters?
Images; @mantova_1911
#mantova #mantova1911 #lotus #lotusflower #italy #footballkits #thekitsman
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