Why Germany Wear White at the World Cup Despite It Not Being on Their Flag
- Germany’s white World Cup shirt comes from Prussia’s historic colours, not the nation’s current flag
- Players are wearing special patches to celebrate World Cup achievements, including Golden Boot, Golden Glove and debut honours
- FIFA has introduced rules around stars on kits, with some teams adjusting their traditional designs for the tournament
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With the 2026 FIFA World Cup in full swing, supporters have continued to notice several interesting details about the kits worn by teams and players throughout the tournament.
The competition, being hosted across the United States, Mexico and Canada, has brought plenty of attention to the small details displayed on players’ shirts, from achievement patches to historic symbols linked to football’s biggest stage.
Source: Getty Images
One of the most noticeable features has been the Golden Boot patch worn by players who previously finished as the World Cup’s top scorer.
England captain Harry Kane, France forward Kylian Mbappé and Colombia star James Rodríguez have all worn the special badge during the tournament to recognise their past achievements.
Teams whose countries have previously lifted the World Cup trophy also have gold tournament logos on their kits. Nations including Argentina, Uruguay, Germany, Brazil, England, France and Spain wear the special marking to celebrate their history in the competition.
Players are also wearing smaller patches underneath the main tournament logo. Some stars, including Lamine Yamal and Erling Haaland, have debut patches to mark their first appearances at a World Cup.
Legacy patches have also become a major talking point, with Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modrić, Manuel Neuer and Japan’s Yuto Nagatomo wearing badges to recognise their appearances at five or more World Cups.
However, some African teams have had to make adjustments. Egypt and Senegal usually wear stars to represent their Africa Cup of Nations victories, but FIFA requested that they remove them during the World Cup to prevent confusion between continental and global achievements.
Why do Germany wear white?
Beyond the patches and symbols, some supporters have also questioned why certain teams wear kit colours that do not directly match their national flags.
Germany is one of the biggest examples. The country traditionally wears a white home shirt featuring black, red and yellow details. While black, red and yellow are the colours of the German flag, white is the dominant colour despite not appearing on the national flag.
The reason dates back to the history of Prussia, a powerful German state that played a major role in the country’s formation.
White was chosen because it was part of the flag of Prussia, which used black and white as its main colours. Prussia became the driving force behind the unification of Germany in 1871 before being officially abolished in 1947 after World War II.
The former Prussian territories are now spread across several modern countries, including Germany, Poland, Russia and Lithuania.
Black and white also influenced the colours associated with the German Reich. According to ESPN, the colours combined Prussia’s black and white with the red and white colours of the Hanseatic League to create the black, white and red combination.
When Germany’s national football team was established, it adopted Prussia’s black and white colours. Even after Prussia disappeared, the team continued using the traditional design.
The black eagle from Prussia’s history also remains an important symbol, appearing on Germany’s coat of arms and the national team’s official emblem.
Source: YEN.com.gh
