New Kit: Does The All Blacks' Rugby Jersey Match The Occasion?

(image sources: All Black Official Shop, bash.com)

The Rivalry

In 2026, the All Blacks Men's Rugby team will take on South Africa's Springboks and local franchises in the Greatest Rugby Rivalry Series. Eight matches played over the span of little more than a month. 4 of those 8 matches are what the Rugby World would recognize as the fiercest matchup in history.

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A New All Blacks Rugby Jersey (?)

The All Blacks, along with their kit partners Adidas, crafted a unique "heritage" jersey to commemorate the occasion.

The jersey sports a classic black base, overlaid with what seems to be a sublimated/screen printed fern pattern.

Most noticeably, the jersey has done away with the iconic white collar that has been a nod back to the traditional jerseys from the past.

A purple trim with the series' "Rugby's Greatest Rivalry" wording has been added to the inside of the jersey, connecting the all-black collar and base.

Other than that, there's not much to be admired about the jersey.

The absence (or at least, minimal amount) of marketing for the jersey's launch begs the question if the All Black's had invested any thought into the design. Yes, the series is still quite a while away, with promotional marketing yet to have gone in full swing, but it does contribute to the jersey feeling sub par.

An argument could be made that the real heritage lies within the simplicity and reference of vintage jerseys from the past, but then why add an element of design that has been done before?

(Source: All Black Official Shop)

The 2023 Rugby World Cup All Blacks jersey presented a similar sublimated/screen printed pattern on a black base albeit the only difference being the rounded, simplified design style of fern.

There isn't really much difference between the two jerseys.

The Upside

That being said, it isn't all doom and gloom. The silver lining (see what I did there) was the Training Jerseys with a vintage hooped black-and-maroon pattern.

The maroon, possibly taken from the 2026 Training Jersey Color Palette, is overlaid with the same Fern Pattern as the Match Jersey, but it's visually more appealing thanks to the introduction of the purple.

(Source: All Black Official Shop)

My Take

If I was tasked with conceptualising and designing a jersey commemorating the competition between these 2 monumental teams, I'd do the following:

• Keep it Simple but Explore the Subtleties.

I'd keep the base of the jersey solid black as an homage to the traditional, iconic All Black Jerseys of the past. Also, I'd include small bits of dark grey trimmings along the panels of the jersey in areas such the side panels, ends of the sleeves and the collar.

• Add some Flair.

The Purple colour has been present within the All Blacks' visual ecosystem, visible not only on their attire, but also in their social communication designs and their Website. I'd add some of it to accompany the dark grey trimmings, but as a tertiary color. Only emphasizing the shape of the jersey. Not driving the design.

In conclusion, the All Blacks' Greatest Rivalry Jersey feels a bit like an afterthought. It's not a "bad" jersey, by no means at all! It just seems like the jersey doesn't live up to the rivalry.

Visually, it unfortunately says: "Rugby's Average-est Rivalry".