With the unveiling of their inaugural kits ahead of their USL Championship debut in 2024, Rhode Island FC is hoping to make professional soccer a big deal in the smallest state in the Union.
The Pawtucket-based team launched their kits — manufactured by New York sportswear company Capelli Sport — during an event on Monday, December 4, where they also announced the signing of forward Jerome ‘JJ’ Williams.
The home “Energy Kit” is navy blue — or “Bay Blue,” as the club calls it — and plays off the lightning bolt theme found in the club crest. Amber lightning bolts run across the top and bottom of the front of the kit, with bolder white bolts under the crest on the left chest and in the middle of the bottom half. The sleeve cuffs are amber, as are four squares on each shoulder, which is a design feature found on all Capelli kits.
The away “Rhode Kit”, meanwhile, is predominantly amber with a tonal design on the front and back in which stripes — some containing the names of all 39 towns and cities in Rhode Island — overlap with knotted nautical ropes. The henley collar is navy blue, as are panels that run under the arms and taper at the shoulders. The back of the collar has 13 gold stars, the same number found on the Rhode Island state flag.
Both jerseys feature the logo of primary sponsor Breeze Airways on the front, as well as Rhode Island Energy on the back collar and Centreville Bank on the right sleeve.
“The Rhode Island FC kits are another example of our commitment to being a club for all Rhode Island. From the Rhode Island businesses on the jerseys to the Rhode Island details on the kits, they were carefully created with Rhode Island in mind,” RIFC president Brett Luy said on the team’s website. “Throughout my professional soccer career, I remember just how important it was to have a kit that makes you feel ready for game day and that fans are excited to wear as they cheer you on, and I think the Rhode Island FC kit will do just that for our players and our fans.”
Rhode Island FC unveiled their logo back in November 2022. Here’s a graphic explaining all the different elements that make it up:
RIFC will take to the pitch for the first time when the new USL Championship season kicks off in March 2024. They’ll play their first season out of Beirne Stadium at Bryant University in Smithfield before moving to a new state-of-the-art soccer-specific stadium at Tidewater Landing in downtown Pawtucket.
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