Barcelona unveils uniform in homage to the NBA legend
FC Barcelona Unveils Kobe Bryant-Inspired Away Kit in Tribute to Basketball Legend
In a unique collaboration, FC Barcelona has unveiled a new away kit for the 2025/2026 season, designed in partnership with American brand Nike. The kit is a symbolic tribute to the late basketball legend Kobe Bryant, merging his "Mamba Mentality" ethos with Barça’s football philosophy.
The design embodies Kobe Bryant's famous mindset of hard work, discipline, and self-improvement, traits shared by Bryant and FC Barcelona. The jersey features a light Team Gold base with Persian Violet and black accents, representing both Kobe’s basketball legacy and respect for Barça’s expressive style of play.
For the first time on a professional football jersey, the iconic Kobe Sheath sword-in-sheath logo replaces the traditional Nike Swoosh on the chest, symbolizing the significance of this collaboration. The Barcelona crest and the Kobe Sheath logo are decorated with a silicone gloss 3D snakeskin texture, referencing Bryant’s "Black Mamba" nickname and symbolizing strength, agility, and perseverance.
The kit is completed with black shorts featuring purple trims and a snakeskin pattern, and black socks with “Barça” written in purple. This collaboration will last at least until the 2027/28 season and debuted officially on July 31, 2025, during a friendly match against FC Seoul on Barcelona's Asia tour.
This design marks a landmark moment as it merges basketball legend Kobe Bryant’s enduring legacy with FC Barcelona’s football culture in a deeply symbolic, stylistic way, celebrating a cross-sport bond centered on excellence and passion. The high prices fetched by Kobe Bryant's memorabilia, such as his sneakers from his first-ever start for the Los Angeles Lakers in 1997, sold for $240,000, and his debut game jersey, sold for a record $7 million, may contribute to the appreciation of his legacy in the future.
Kobe Bryant often expressed admiration for FC Barcelona's playing style and its players. Tragically, he died in a helicopter crash in January 2020, along with his daughter Gianna and seven others. The record-breaking sale of Bryant's debut game jersey at Sotheby’s in New York underscores the enduring impact of Kobe Bryant on basketball and popular culture.
The collaboration between FC Barcelona and Nike is a significant event in the world of sports fashion, signifying a strong bond between the two entities. The kit is a tribute to the late basketball player Kobe Bryant, a testament to the influence of his "Mamba Mentality" on the world of sports.
The collaboration between FC Barcelona and Nike showcases a unique blending of sports, as the Kobe-inspired away kit for the 2025/2026 season merges football with basketball, specifically the ethos of Kobe Bryant. The jersey, inspired by Bryant's "Mamba Mentality," highlights traits shared by both Kobe Bryant and FC Barcelona, such as hard work, discipline, and self-improvement.
