Has UEFA Banned Bayern Munich's 24-25 Home Kit?
- UEFA Regulation Issue: Bayern Munich's 24-25 home kit does not meet UEFA regulations regarding number visibility due to insufficient contrast between the dark numbers and the red shirt.
- No Kit Ban: Bayern Munich is not banned from wearing their home kit; they could technically wear it by modifying it with white numbers or names to achieve the required contrast, as they will modify their names and number colors.
- False Ban News: Initial reports of a complete ban on the home kit were inaccurate, as the club will be permitted to wear it with appropriate modifications.
Recent reports suggesting UEFA has banned Bayern Munich from wearing its red home kit in the Champions League are not entirely accurate.
As visible in social media posts by the club, Bayern will apparently wear its black away kit against Celtic on February 12, in contrast to its red home kit. However, this is certainly not due to an outright ban from UEFA.
Bayern Must Modify Names & Numbers Color of 24-25 Home Kit
The situation stems from UEFA's 2024 Equipment Regulations regarding number visibility. These rules require player numbers to have a high contrast against the shirt color (Delta L value ≥ 30). Technical measurements of Bayern's traditional dark numbers on red shirt show the problem - the Delta L value between the dark numbers (#2d2324) and red shirt (#a71311) is just 12.6, far below UEFA's minimum requirement of 30.
However, Bayern could technically wear its home kit by modifying it with white numbers to achieve the required contrast - a solution used by Bayern in the 2020-2021 season with its light gray and orange away kit. Instead, the club appears to have chosen to use its black away kit, for no disclosed reasons (May they want to avoid modifying its home kit, which is oddly allowed by the German DFL?).
The off-white third kit, which is Bayern's designated Champions League kit, cannot be used against Celtic due to insufficient contrast against Celtic's white and green home strip.
There is no rule for contrast requirements for other elements of a kit, such as the crest or sponsor.
How the False Ban News Came Got in the World
For those wondering how the false story got its way to news - Footy Headlines first reported that Bayern's home kit does not meed the minimum contrast for names and numbers. Then, One Football quoted us, saying that kit "does probbaly not meet the standards." Now, news channel @BayernSpace amplified that message and said that Bayern was forced to ditch the red home kit. This is not correct, as we are 100% sure that Bayern has registered the current home kit with modified names and number colors to meed UEFA regulations.
This situation highlights how UEFA's equipment regulations can influence kit choices, but it's important to note there is no specific "ban" on Bayern's home kit. The club would be permitted to wear it with appropriate modifications to meet the contrast requirements.
Are you surprised to see Bayern wearing its black away kit against Celtic? Let us know in the comments below.
