Why Portugal, Croatia both are wearing different jerseys than normal for World Cup Round of 32

1 hour ago 3

Portugal and Croatia both have iconic jerseys.

The Portuguese wear those red-and-green outfits, while the Croatian checkered shirt is famous.

When they meet in the World Cup Round of 32 on Thursday, though, neither will be wearing those looks.

Instead, Portugal is in white and some green. Croatia is in royal blue.

MORE: The case for Folarin Balogun's red card

Why are the Portugal and Croatia jerseys different?

Every team brings two jersey combinations to the World Cup, and these teams are wearing their other looks for this matchup.

The Croatia red-and-white checkered pattern would be a tough match visually for either Portugal's red, or for this white-and-green that Portugal is actually wearing.

And as far as contrast, the red vs. blue is a bit bold across the pitch. Generally, FIFA likes there to be a team in mostly white and a team in a color.

This is the closest these teams had to being able to do that.

The fans of both sides will likely be wearing their more traditional looks in the stands, but on the pitch, it's a bit of an alternative clash.

Whichever fanbase and team wins will be happy with it.

The team that goes home? They won't have fond memories of these jerseys.

More FIFA World Cup news:

Read Entire Article