Bianconeri following in County's footsteps

True colours - The Old Lady of Italian football is a stickler for tradition. Juventus' black and white striped shirts have remained the same since 1903.

Juve's kit colours came from England.

The Old Lady of Italian football is a stickler for tradition. Juventus' black and white striped shirts have remained the same since 1903. But before 106 years of the same came something rather different. From 1897 to 1903, Juve's shirts were pink, for no other reason than the fact that the wrong kit was sent to them. A father of one of the players also made shirts for the team but soap and suds took their toll on the pink.

Continual washing faded the colour so much that in 1903 the club sought a change. They asked one of their team members, the Englishman John Savage, if he had any contacts in his homeland who could make them new shirts which would withstand the rigours of washing and in a colour that would not be ruined by mud and rain. Savage had a friend in Nottingham, who was also a supporter of Notts County, who played in black and white striped shirts.

Looking to spread his team's colours around the world, Savage's friend sent the Turin club a box of black and white shirts, and their colours have remained the same ever since. Sadly for Savage's friend, the kit is still the only thing County (Anglo-Italian Cup Winners 1994/95, currently in League Two) have in common with the Bianconeri (27 Italian titles and twice champions of Europe) * Alex Kunawicz

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