Football shirt culture #3 Juventus

Alessandro del Piero, Mohammed Sissoko, David Trezeguet, and Gianluigi Buffon.

Hey, Stallion. You aren’t the only ones who think that pink kits are cool. But I am not going to post those awful pictures of those pink kits. The ad from a few years ago promoting the 'New Holland' sponsor will do just fine.

Juventus, my favorite Italian club, wore them (shamefully, I might say) in their early years. Thankfully, a supplier from England (deliberately) shipped them the black and white striped shirts that are now synonymous with the club.

I wanted to get the shirt with ‘Tamoil’ as a shirt sponsor but was unable to. My first Juventus shirt was the one with ‘New Holland Fiat’ and then the ‘BectClic’ home and away kits. The new ones with Jeep on them look might cool.

Here’s my history with the Italian club.

Around the time of the 1982 World Cup, my father came home from Italy one day with a blue Azzurri kit with five letters stitched on the back -- “ROSSI.” I think I was bouncing off the walls with delight. Paolo Rossi, the hero of the World Cup winning Italian team. He scored six goals in the tournament including one in the finals against a West German team led by Karl Heinz Rummenigge, Felix Magath, Harald Schumacher, and Pierre Littbarski.

I remember cutting the cover of Time magazine that had Rossi on the cover and taping it on the wall beside my bed. With the New York Cosmos in their death throes, I was in search of a football club to latch my loyalties to. I gave my heart to Liverpool but I was intrigued and fascinated by world football. That meant I watched every team and club that I could and that included Italy and  Rossi.

Rossi led the Old Lady to two Scudettos but this was an age when there was no cable television and the internet and information was hard to come by. The only sports magazines available locally did not feature football. The American newspapers available had none of world football as well. The dearth of info saw my love for the game dissipate until I got to travel abroad more often and was able to reacquaint myself with the game.

In the office of my grade school coach, the late Bro. Jesus Oscariz, there was posters of Johan Cruyff, Franz Beckenbauer, and Rossi. I remember going in almost every day just to look at that stunning picture of that great Italian striker.

And so it was during the time of Zinedine Zidane that I became a huge Juve fan because there was cable, the internet, and more info to feed my insatiable hunger for the game and knowledge.

But Juventus. I had to make that choice whether to follow Milan, Roma, or Juve. And well, you know how it went.

Consider them for La Vecchia Signora – Rossi, Roberto Baggio, Edgar Davids, Zibi Boniek, Didier Deschamps, Michel Platini, Fabio Capello, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Michael Laudrup, Pavel Nedved, Lilian Thuram, David Trezeguet, Alessandro del Piero, Dino Zoff, and Gianluca Zambrotta to name a few. They are the most successful club in Italian history with 28 Scudettos, 9 Copa Italias, 4 Supercopa Italianas, and 1 Serie B championship in their massive trophy case.

Watching Juve relegated following the 2006 season because of calciopoli was difficult to take. This season, the Old Lady returned to the top of the Serie A dethroning AC Milan. But in the recent allegations of match fixing with goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon reported to have placed massive bets. The same allegations dogged Rossi. In fact, he was suspended for two years.

I feel lost and angry once more. A trying time to be a Juventus fan.

My first ever Juventus shirt. Tried to get the Tamoil but was unable to. So this one wasn't so bad -- 'New Holland Fiat Group' with the 'Bianconeri' on the nape area. Translated that means "the white and blacks."

The kits from last season with sponsor BetClic. I am wearing the away shirt in the picture below. Love that. Kinda snazzy just the way the away shirt of Portugal is. I purchased that shirt last year in Kuwait at a huge discount.

And here's this year's kit! Cool looking, huh? Love it.