FC Barcelona Brings Back Senyera Flag Kit for Champions League Clash

It was a blast from the past for La Liga giants FC Barcelona on Wednesday, as they unexpectedly brought back a kit from previous seasons for their UEFA Champions League clash against SL Benfica.

Barça broke out their Senyera flag kits — which they first wore in 2019-20 — for the match the Estádio da Luz in Lisbon, Portugal. The kits are yellow with four diagonal red brush strokes across the front. It’s meant to evoke the Senyera, the flag of Catalonia and a symbol of Catalonian independence.

The shirts were paired with yellow shorts and yellow socks with red stripes on Wednesday.

Barça had not indicated any intention to wear the kit this season prior to this week. Videos posted to the club’s social media accounts prior to the game showed the back of yellow kits, but confirmation officially came about an hour before kickoff when Barça posted their starting lineup on Twitter.

🚨 𝘽𝘼𝙍𝘾̧𝘼 𝙓𝙄 !! 🚨 #BenficaBarça pic.twitter.com/xPytQSNRmA
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) September 29, 2021

Barcelona unveiled their 2021-22 home kits in June, featuring a striping pattern based on their crest. Their away kits, released in July, are light purple with iridescent logos. In September, Barça released a home kit for Champions League matches that was created in collaboration with young local artists.

Benfica, meanwhile, wore their red home shirts with white shorts and red socks in Wednesday’s match. This may have led to Barça’s decision to break out the Senyera kits, as they may have felt any of their other kits would clash with their hosts’ choice of kits.