Kit Watch

Puma is facing significant criticism at the 2026 World Cup as multiple national team jerseys have easily ripped during matches.

Incidents involving players from Czechia, Morocco, Egypt, and Paraguay have highlighted an ongoing durability issue with the brand's latest kits - every torn shirt in the tournament so far belongs to a Puma-sponsored team.

The Puma 2026 World Cup kits incorporate the latest version of PUMA's ULTRAWEAVE “Thermoadapt” technology, which obviously is not tear-resistant enough.

The recurring wardrobe malfunctions have resulted in terrible PR for the German sportswear manufacturer and even prompted the viral resurgence of Xherdan Shaqiri's infamous quote from Euro 2016, where he joked that he hopes Puma does not produce condoms.

The Scottish national team's equipment staff have taken an extra step to inspire their players during the 2026 World Cup by adding motivational phrases to the inner collar of their match shirts.

This initiative is part of the broader "Choose Scotland" campaign, which features messaging such as "You can’t choose where you’re born but you can choose who you stand with."

Guillermo Ochoa has been denied the chance to wear FIFA's new legacy patch at the 2026 World Cup. Despite being selected for six World Cup tournaments spanning from 2006 to 2026, the Mexican goalkeeper does not meet the strict criteria set by FIFA. The governing body requires players to have made on-pitch appearances in at least five different World Cups to qualify for the special badge.

Ochoa did not play any minutes during the 2006 and 2010 tournaments, meaning he has only registered on-pitch appearances in three World Cups prior to the 2026 edition. Because of this, FIFA officially refused to award him the patch. Other veterans playing in the tournament, such as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modric, Manuel Neuer, and Yuto Nagatomo, have received the legacy patch for meeting the five-tournament appearance threshold.

The Mexican Football Federation is reportedly planning to push for a reconsideration of the ruling. If Ochoa features in a match during the 2026 tournament, the federation intends to appeal FIFA's decision in hopes of securing the legacy patch for the veteran goalkeeper.

South Korea have been forced to change the nameset color on their 2026 away kit to comply with FIFA equipment regulations. The original light green names and numbers, which were worn during the team's pre-tournament friendlies, have been replaced with navy for the 2026 World Cup.

The change was made to increase the visibility of the names and numbers from a distance. The original light green color did not provide enough contrast against the light purple and white camouflage-style pattern of the Nike away shirt, violating FIFA's strict rules regarding the legibility of player identification.

The updated navy nameset was debuted in South Korea's second match of the tournament, providing a stark contrast to the shirt's base design and ensuring full compliance with FIFA's visibility standards.

The second Group F match between Japan and Tunisia will mark the 1,000th match in FIFA World Cup history. FIFA has appointed Romanian referee István Kovács to officiate this historic milestone match, which will take place at Monterrey Stadium on June 20.

A special highlight of the occasion will be the referee's commemorative uniform: a bright red jersey featuring three gold stripes on the sleeves, along with a "MATCH 1000 FIFA WORLD CUP" badge.

A special Adidas referee kit has been created for American official Tori Penso, featuring the brand's iconic three stripes customized in the United States national colors. Spotted at the 2026 World Cup game between Czechia and South Africa, the unique jersey adds a personalized, patriotic touch to the standard match official uniform.

Oddly, the stripes on the shorts did not match those of the shirt.

England have moved the front numbers on their 2026 World Cup home kit to the center of the chest, aligning the match-worn shirts with the retail versions. When the Three Lions initially debuted their Nike 2026-27 home kit earlier this year, the front numbers were unexpectedly placed on the right chest below the Swoosh, causing confusion as promotional images had shown them centered. Now, for the World Cup opener, the home kit's front numbers have been repositioned to the middle, matching the design of the away kit and Nike's original product shots.

In the World Cup 2026 match between Colombia and Uzbekistan, James Rodríguez was spotted wearing a special "Golden Boot" patch on the right sleeve of his jersey, honoring the Golden Boot award he won at the 2014 World Cup after scoring six goals, including his iconic volley against Uruguay.

All Special 2026 World Cup Player Patches Revealed

2d