RSL Best & Worst Kits: The Home Kits

The best RSL home kits from the reader survey last week

By Kreg Asay, Randal Serr, Joseph Hutchison, and Lucas Muller May 9, 2020, 2:00pm MDT

MLS: Los Angeles Galaxy at Real Salt Lake

And here it is the much anticipated best and worst Real Salt Lake home kits from the reader survey. How did your picks compare?

9th Place: Average rating of 3.83 - LOWEST OVERALL

SOCCER: NOV 09 MLS - Western Conference Semifinal - Real Salt Lake at Galaxy — 2014-15 Home

Kreg: Not my least favorite, but as with most the yellow bar was just weird. Perhaps if there were 2 or 3 more to act as hoops? Naaa.. that would be even weirder.

Randal: I never really understood the thick frequency bar, but went along with it. I definitely didn’t lose any sleep over it.

Joseph: This is my least favorite by far. I think the yellow bar is just bad, especially how it goes onto the sleeves.

Lucas: It’s almost a good jersey, but that crown is so bizarre. It’s a rare instance where the replica version, which has a solid yellow line across the chest, looks better than the authentic.

8th Place: Average rating of 4.07

New York Red Bulls v Real Salt Lake — 2020-21 Home

Kreg: This one is my least favorite of all home kits. The ‘topography’ effect looks more like a fingerprint stain. But the blue shorts make it slightly more redeeming.

Randal: I differ with most others here, but I think this is one of RSL’s better kits. It is modern and has a unique Utah twist to it. I think it has a confident look about it.

Joseph: I agree with Randal on this one. I was pretty skeptical when I saw the renderings, but once I saw it in person I thought it looked sharp.

Lucas: I like the desire for creativity, but it doesn’t come off in my opinion. There are things in the shirt that I do like, such as the thicker color and sleeve edges, font for the back, but the topographical map gets lost and makes the whole thing look muddied. The saving grace is blue shorts.

7th Place: Average rating of 4.48

MLS - FC Dallas vs Real Salt Lake - July 23, 2005 — 2005 Home

Kreg: Who remembers RSL before jersey sponsors? (Me!) It was a decent color combination with the blue shorts even though the jersey just looks like a red t-shirt. NOt bad for a first effort.

Joseph: It’s not bad, but not one of my favorites. What pushes others over this for me is that I prefer the darker red of other kits.

Lucas: It doesn’t do a whole lot, but it gets the job done.

6th Place: Average rating of 5.45

MLS: Real Salt Lake at LA Galaxy — 2016-17 Home

Kreg: The blue on the color doesn’t stand out, but at least the yellow stripes break up the red a bit. It’s pretty monochromatic.

Joseph: It’s just bland. The faux-collar doesn’t work, and other than that it’s just a red t-shirt.

Lucas: Far too simple, but it’s nice to see some blue and yellow in the kit.

5th Place: Average rating of 5.53

MLS - Chivas USA vs Real Salt Lake - October 6, 2007 — 2006-07 Home

Kreg: I rather liked this one, it’s the first jersey that I bought as a fan. All three colors are present for a classic look. My 2nd place for home kits.

Joseph: I think this is a good looking kit. The dashes of color on the shirt, shorts, and sleeves mix it up a little, and I like the darker red.

Lucas: Real Salt Lake started to form their identity during this time. The team was up and running and this kit helps encapsulate who the team became.

4th Place: Average rating of 6.37

Colorado Rapids v Real Salt Lake — 2010-11 Home (without CCL logo)

Kreg: Above average. With the blue sleeves it’s not as monochrome as the 2016-17 version, that puts it ahead on my list. It’s the most memorable kit due to the Champions League run.

Randal: This is my favorite RSL kit. I really like the all-red look and it just happens to coincide to one of RSL’s best seasons in terms of quality on the field. I remember seeing the team play in these for the first time in real life, and I loved it.

Joseph: This is one of my favorites, mostly for nostalgic reasons. It’s kind of bland, but it brings back memories from the good ol’ days.

Lucas: This jersey doesn’t do a whole lot for me. It was an incredible time for the team, but the design here is acceptable and not much better, which is far different from the team’s performance at the time.

3rd Place: Average rating of 6.60

New England Revolution v Real Salt Lake - FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup — 2012-13 Home

Kreg: It’s weird that the away version of this kit with one colored sleeve ranked highest, while this one placed lower. Still, a decent effect overall. I liked this kit.

Joseph: I don’t like this one, and it all comes down to the blue sleeve. I like the home kit better than the away kit for this year though.

Lucas: This is one of my favorite shirts simply because of it’s weirdness. It’s clean but with a striking difference in sleeve color, which ties the red/blue balance together in a fun way.

2nd Place: Average rating of 6.87

Columbus Crew v Real Salt Lake — 2008-09 Home

Kreg: This was my favorite for home kits. Very much like the 06-07 style, but with bold yellow stripes.

Joseph: This was my second favorite kit. The mix of all three of RSL’s colors really worked here and it wasn’t too complex.

Lucas: This is the classic RSL kit. Red body, blue sleeves and shorts, and a trophy to boot. It feels old-school RSL in the best possible way.

1st Place: Average rating of 7.75 - BEST OVERALL

MLS: Western Conference Semifinal-Real Salt Lake at Sporting KC — 2018-19 Home

Kreg: I put this one 3rd, very clean style with a throwback to the two earlier kits.

Joseph: This was my favorite kit. Although there’s not too much going on on the shirt, it had some class. The thing that makes it stand out most, especially from the 2016-17 and 2010-11 kits, are the blue sleeves complimented by the blue trim on the shorts. I feel like that combination brings the whole kit together.

Lucas: The 18-19 home jersey is probably my favorite in club history. It’s clean, but not in how MLS uses that term to describe boring. It has a classic football feel to it while encapsulating much of the team’s history.

Honorable Mention - Found too late to include on the poll, but included here for future reference.

2006 Home (pre sponsor)

MLS - Colorado Rapids vs Real Salt Lake - September 2, 2006 — 2006 Home (pre-sponsor)

Notes: This one was used only for about the first half of 2006 before Xango became the jersey sponsor and the design changed to the familiar one in 5th place. The crest changed as well to the current one from the original 2005 version with the stylized ‘REAL’.

2010-11 Home (with Champions League crest)

Notes: The only difference between this and the original 2010-11 kit is the addition of the Champions League crest on the right opposite the RSL crest. It was used primarily during the CCL games and not for MLS play.