Why do Barcelona wear red and blue kits?

Barcelona have long been associated with their signature blue-and-red striped kits, the colours they have donned while lifting major trophies throughout their illustrious history.

It’s been worn by legendary figures like Lionel Messi, Ronaldinho and Thierry Henry, but what is the reason the Blaugrana play in these colours?

Goal takes a look.

Why do Barcelona wear red and blue kits?

Barcelona have been wearing red and blue since their formation, and have stuck with their trademark colour palette in the many years since.

The club’s nickname of “Blaugrana” stems from their dual colourway; in Catalan, “blau” means blue and “grana” means garnet.

The side’s home kit always features the iconic red and blue colours exclusively, with their jerseys in red and blue stripes and their shorts donning a solid blue.

There are several rumours and theories about how Barcelona chose the red and blue colours specifically. According to one tale, the son of the first president – Arthur Witty – stated that it was his father’s idea that the colours of Barcelona match the Merchant Taylor School team (their family is British).

Another possibility, put forth by the author Toni Strubell, is that the colours are inspired from Robespierre’s First Republic. 

In Catalonia, however, the popular belief is that the colours were selected by club founder Joan Gamper as they are the same colours as his home team Basel.

Why do Barcelona have the England flag in their crest?

What’s now recognised  as the English flag – a red cross over a white background – is actually St George’s cross.

St George is a fabled heroic military saint and a crusader, with his cross becoming the national flag of England since the early modern period.

He is known as the patron saint for both England and also Catalonia, known as Sant Jordi to Catalans.

The flag of Barcelona itself incorporates St George’s cross, the red and yellow stripes of the Senyera and the symbol of the Crown of Aragorn.

Barcelona’s crest, in turn, consists of St George’s cross in the upper-left corner, the Catalan flag next to it, and the team colours (blue and red) underneath it.