In-Hand Photos Reveal Flawed Nike Collar Construction on Atlético Madrid 26-27 Home Kit

While official launch photos and promotional renders mostly present shirts in their most pristine state, the Atlético Madrid 26-27 home kit does not fulfill expectations in real life. When we saw Nike's kit in-store, we were disappointed with the collar execution. Our close-up images of the authentic jersey reveal noticeable puckering and uneven stitching right at the front neckline.

In the elaborate launch images from afar, everything looks fine with the Atlético Madrid kit

Atlético Madrid 26-27 Home Kit Collar

This close-up look highlights the navy blue ribbed collar on the Colchoneros' 2026-27 shirt, which features a pronounced triangular knit insert at the base of the round neck - a template used by many Nike teams. It is a construction that does not look too complicated at first glance, but it causes massive problems in reality.

The way the main striped jersey fabric meets the thick ribbed insert creates severe tension along the seam. This causes the central vertical red stripe to bunch up and wrinkle awkwardly instead of lying flat against the chest. The striped design of the Atlético Madrid 26-27 home kit, in fact, perfectly unveils other manufacturing flaws. The stripe in the middle should be exactly at the bottom point of the V-insert. However, in around 1/3 of the shirts, it is noticeably offset.

Other Nike kits with that collar also suffer from problems - the Barcelona third kit pictured puckers in the collar area.

The collar construction and neckline tailoring on Nike templates have frequently drawn scrutiny from collectors and designers. The in-hand look at Atlético's strip highlights how complex mixed-material collar designs can struggle with quality and fit when produced at scale.

It is not only Nike's shirts that have problems, even though they are the most evident. In hand, the collar of the Roma 26-27 home kit was also a little skewed on many shirts, for example.