Dortmund Blackout Anniversary Kit

19 December 1909, eighteen German footballers unhappy with the way the Catholic church was running their local football club decided enough was enough. They decided to create a new team in the Dortmund community, named Borussia from the Latin for Prussia. Little did they know that 110 years, 8 German top-flight titles, and 1 UEFA Champions League later, this small team from Dortmund would be the club with the highest average attendance % worldwide. This frankly beautiful shirt was released to celebrate the club’s highly decorated history, and to reward those fans whose loyalty and passion has never been questioned.

The kit itself is a far-cry from the Dortmund shirts we have learned to know and love. The hugest of Dortmund fanatics among you may know that from 1909-1913 the side actually wore a blue and white striped kit with a red sash, a kind of mix between Hertha Berlin and River Plate. For the vast majority of us however, it is the striking yellow and black that has become synonymous with Borussia Dortmund.

The anniversary shirt is a homage to the city’s industrial history in the Ruhr region of Germany. The Ruhr is essentially Germany’s answer to the North of England, in terms of industrial history, community togetherness, and regional pride, in fact Dortmund’s English twin city is actually Leeds. For this reason, the black and silver represent the coal and steel production that was instrumental to
Dortmund’s growth as a major city in Germany after the industrial revolution.

The industrial history of Dortmund is still an important aspect of the city’s pride, and it is still deep-rooted into many of the fans. Seeing a kit like this celebrating Dortmund’s history and culture in this way is a real classy touch from the club’s hierarchy, and it was seemingly very well received. The shirt sold out in just 150 minutes, and within days of its release, shirts were being resold for up to
£1800. A price that is much much higher than any of our mystery football kit boxes…

If you really want to wow your friends with a shirt that is not only gorgeous, but also incredibly rare for such a huge club, then this is the one for you. If by some miracle you managed to acquire tickets to see Dortmund play at the Signal Iduna Park, then maybe you could be the singular speck of black in their famous “yellow wall”. Failing that, you’ve always got yourself a real gem to add to your
collection.

Thank you for reading.
By Sam Palmer.