Ranking Every England Away Kit of the 21st Century

England won the 1966 World Cup wearing that famous royal red kit, but the design idea was only 15 years old at the time. Only in 1951 did England first don an all red away kit. Since then, helped of course by Sir Alf Ramsey’s all-conquering side, the Three Lions in red has well and truly caught on.

The 2014/15 edition won the race to be crowned the best England home kit since the turn of the millennium. Which will win the title of best away strip?

So, let's get into it. Here's every away England kit since 2000 ranked.

13. 2008

England only wore their intended Euro 2008 away piece for a single calendar year and, frankly, thank goodness. It really was a woeful effort that looked like a training kit - a dreadful training kit at that.

The central logo in the 1990s and at Euro 2004 worked. This one did not.

12. 2016-2017

It’s not absolutely, catastrophically hopeless - few England kits through the ages have been - but this edition was a boring Nike template kit made even worse by the addition of vivid, jarring, fluorescent blue socks.

England came from 2-0 down to beat Germany 3-2 in Berlin wearing this kit. The outfit itself was not worthy.

11. 2006-2007

The robotic gold numbering was a nice theme on this kit - a World Cup outfit worn 50 years after England won their first and only major tournament. Sven-Göran Eriksson’s team looked alright in it, but there have been better kits, and it would look out of place if it was released tomorrow.

Decent, but you’d only wear it to Wembley if you didn’t own another version. If you don’t own another version, buy a new version.

10. 2004-2005

Little crosses of St George on each shoulder were the main take-home point of the Euro 2004 away kit. White shorts and red socks made the shirt look even nicer than it really was as we watched Wayne Rooney in all his untamed teenage promise.

Nevertheless, it was an England kit that didn’t really stand out.

Bonus fact: This was the first time England played with a star above the Three Lions crest. Not even the home edition of the time had that feature.

9. 2011-2012

Second kits that aren’t red are very bold decisions, but clearly not particularly bold kits. A navy shirt with a baby-blue collar worked nicely, but it was never going to go down in history, even if - dare it be said - England had won Euro 2012 in it.

Nothing offensive about it. Just fine.

8. 1999-2001

A kit synonymous with the winding down years of Alan Shearer’s international career, the away strip for Euro 2000 mixed a strange but tasteful red with a dark, navy collar. Red and blue are rarely seen together on second strips, but they complemented each other here.

True retro value.

7. 2013

A return to the gold emblem worn at the 2006 World Cup, this one celebrated the FA’s 150-year existence…and celebrated it well.

The texture of the kit was coarse, but that made it look vintage and smart. While the home kit had a questionable circular collar, this one had a smart buttoned one in keeping with the colour used on the rest of the piece.

A shame it didn’t get to grace a tournament.

6. 2020-present

Nike's current effort for England sits in mid-table.

It's the most brazenly blue shirt the Three Lions have worn since the early 90s, and although there's nothing strictly wrong with it, it is perhaps a little too different from what we've seen in recent years to justify a place higher up the table.

Who knows, a decent showing at Euro 2020 and this could become a grower.

5. 2014-2015

Again, a very clean effort for worn at the 2014 World Cup - again it's just a shame England were so poor.

A much lighter, brighter red than many others in this list, what it did have was a consistent pinstripe design from top to bottom and a crest which had the trio of lions in a near-perfect shade of blue. The font used for the numbering and lettering? Awesome.

4. 2017

This navy number was more streamlined, more athletic, and more pleasant on the eye than its 2011 predecessor. The England crest became completely and utterly baby-blue - including the ten roses - but it worked well.

You could be forgiven for failing to recall England even wearing it, but overall it just about made the grade.

3. 2002-2003

David Beckham’s Argentina redemption shirt. The replica editions were hopelessly reversible, but to keep the red side showing at all times would be to wear a lovely England kit.

A nice serif font for player names on the back, this one was made even better by the adventurous lining at the edge of the sleeves.

2. 2018-2020

Tunisia. Colombia. Sweden. This kit certainly got the runaround during the Three Lions’ Russian expedition two summers ago, and it deserved to. Large crests akin to those worn in the 1990s are big business again, and this one certainly has that.

A subtle cross through the centre was a good touch. The entire uniform is patterned with thin horizontal grading lines. Fresh.

1. 2009-2010

People couldn’t get enough of the simplistic 2010 home shirt, though we have no idea why. The away kit was a little better. Still the same design of course, except this time the shade of red really did work.

The Three Lions were hopeless in it, but it was classy, classic and offered a nice throwback to an era of basic, no-nonsense kits.