Take A Look

1924

Umbro Kicks Off

After a few years of trading from the back room of a pub in Mobberley, Harold invites his brother Wallace to start a company.

They have the perfect business partner in each other. They have the best product in the land. All they need is a name. The abbreviation of “um” from the family name and “bro” from brothers fits just right.  

Here’s an abbreviated history of their legacy to date.

1930

From Factory Floor To The Locker Room In 48 Hours

It’s not long before Harold and Wallace outgrow their stockrooms and open their first factory to meet increasing demand. The factory means they can produce at scale while maintaining the standards that makes their product so popular in the first place. And get it to customers ASAP.

1933

Umbro Join The Ruck

The brothers realise the potential of their product beyond the football pitch and take their first steps into rugby with a wide selection of jerseys, “ruggernicks” (shorts) and “hosiery” (socks), as they were called back in the day.

1934

Win Win

Manchester City and Portsmouth play the FA Cup at Wembley and we can’t lose, because both teams wear Umbro. City go on to win and graciously send a letter of thanks to the factory: “The fit, quality and smartness of the entire outfit was undoubtedly perfection.”

We couldn’t put it better ourselves.

1935

Umbrochure

As the product range expands, the Umbrochure is introduced. Originally a basic list, it went on to become a full colour print that celebrates the culture of the company as well as the gear.

Nobody’s ever come up with a better name either!

1939

The War Effort

Sports stop for World War 2, but we don’t. Companies are asked “What can you do for your country?” and Umbro answers: the factory switches production from sportswear to military uniforms and interior fittings for Lancaster bombers.

1954

The Four Minute Mile

Umbro equip the entire British athletics team at the 1952 Olympics. But the squad is upstaged by Roger Bannister’s incredible individual effort a couple of years later when he smashes the four minute mile. In Umbro, of course.

1955

For The Players. For The Fans.

Football kits were for footballers only, until Umbro introduced the “Sportswear X-Mas Pack” in 1955 - the forerunner of the “Umbroset”. It contained a combination of matching football jersey, shorts, and socks in the colors of the most prominent clubs in the league, so boys aged between four and ten could dress like their heroes on the pitch. This is the first time Football fans could buy individual club kits and the move marks the start of the global craze for club replica kits.

1966

World Beaters

The English national side win their only World Cup wearing the definitive English football brand. But it’s not just the three lions wearing the double diamond – 15 of the 16 participants are equipped by Umbro.

1966

Down Under

Umbro dress the British & Irish Lions on their tour of Australia and New Zealand, taking the brand to a new hemisphere of fans. The Lions win both test matches against the Wallabies, but lose all four meetings with the All Blacks.

1970

Mexican Summer

Brazil conquer the heat of the 1970 World Cup wearing Umbro’s lightweight and breathable Aztec shirts.

1971

Lions Roar

The British & Irish Lions get their revenge in New Zealand, becoming the only team to defeat the All Blacks in a test on home ground. They wear ultra-durable Umbro Dragon jerseys and Hooka shorts.

1976

Generation Tape

As kit sponsorship rules relax, Umbro’s design team gives the double diamond the now iconic tape sleeve treatment. Featured on legendary kits worn by teams like Scotland, Everton and Wolves, these have become beloved by fans over the decades. And who can blame them.

1980

Home Nations

Umbro make big strides in rugby in the 80s, supplying England, Scotland and Wales and top league sides including Widnes and St Helens with high performance jerseys, shorts and training wear.

1985

Boot V1

After being in the sportswear game for more than 60 years, Umbro decide it’s time to get involved in footwear. The brand’s first effort is a leather model called Cascavel made for the Brazilian market.

1992

The Boot Made Perfect

It doesn’t take long for Umbro to design what many – including some of the world’s very finest players – consider the perfect boot: the Speciali. Crafted with a fine leather construction in Italy, it’s one of the lightest boots money can buy.

1996

Shearer Shines

Despite the hype, England don’t bring the Euro 96 trophy home. But at least Shearer brought the golden boot back. And he did it in Specialis, as he did throughout his whole career. Legend.

1997

Iconic Goal. Iconic Boots

One of football’s greatest goals is scored in Specialis. A free kick from 35 yards, hit with physics-defying force, the ball bending around the wall before bending again around the keeper. We are, of course, describing Roberto Carlos’s impossible strike against France.

2001

Another Legend

Michael Owen announced his arrival on the international stage with a wonder goal against Argentina at the 1998 World Cup. Three years later, he matures into one of the finest strikers of his generation and earns the Ballon d’Or to prove it. He did it all in Specialis.

2009

Tailored for success

To create the new England shirt, Umbro’s design team look into the brand’s rich heritage of tailoring. They come up with a smart, simple and deeply functional design that goes on to become a classic in its own right.

This process also leads to the Archive Research Project, an innovative capsule collection that pushes the boundaries of sportswear.

2014

90 Years Young

Nine decades after the Humphrey brothers sold their first shirt, we mark the occasion with What Colour Is Love, a video that celebrates the Umbro football family around the world.

2016

Don't Get Caught

We challenge players to evade defenders with a pair of insane speed boots – Medusae which combined the best of a leather boot with a lightweight outsole and the latest and greatest of our Velocita series.  And fastest… obviously.

2017

All You Need

Speed and Touch - what else do you need in a football boot? That's the question we asked with the launch of the Medusae 2, the latest generation of our top leather boot, with Portugal star Pepe one of many players wearing the new style. Elsewhere, Michail Antonio revealing some magical moves on Valentine's Day, the man known for his goal celebrations starring in a hilarious video that got plenty of people talking!

2018

More Game

Umbro gets involved on the futsal pitch with the introduction of the Chaleira Pro, specially designed for the fast-paced, small sided game. It makes an instant impact as top players pick it up immediately. Velocita 4 and UX Accuro II also launch, keeping our boot collection on point.

2018

Umbro X Christopher Ræburn

We launch a limited edition capsule collection that fully embraces Christopher Raeburn’s brand ethos: REMADE, REDUCED, RECYLED. The project deconstructs iconic Umbro shirts from 1996 to 2010 and crafts them into a 6-piece range of unique and authentic statement pieces. No single garment is the same.

2018

Leather & Laceless

Less is more when it comes to the Medusae 3 Elite and its revolutionary one-piece k-leather upper. Less lace, more speed. Less weight, more control. Oh, and more goals all round. Worn by Portugal legend Pepe, US Women’s National Team goalie Ashlyn Harris and Chilean goal machine Esteban Paredes.

2019

ARP Sneaker Collection

We turn back time with a collection of iconic footwear from the 90s, featuring four iconic football training styles: NEPTUNE, RUN M, EXERT MAX and MAXIMA. A subtle design refresh brings them bang up-to-date.

2019

Our Diamond Anniversary

As part of our 95^th anniversary, we asked Mancunians what football means to them. Hundreds answered. And then we painted the 11 best, funniest, and most insightful responses on the side of a massive wall in the Northern Quarter. Our reputation as “Dior of the Football world” (don’t take our word for it - this is what Harold was called in a newspaper feature in the 60s) or as our friends at Soccerbible say “the gangsters of kit design” is celebrated with exhibitions in Manchester and Milan, led by Mundial and Classic Football Shirts.

2019

UX Accuro 3

Built for ultimate control and perfect touch, the UX Accuro 3 is specially engineered with D30 technology, a world first innovation for a football boot.

2019

In Their Boots

As well as sponsoring professionals, Umbro has always supported amateur talent too. We put out a global open invite to find the next generation of footballers, and after trialling them in collaboration with professional coaches, sign the winners to one-year sponsorship deals.

2020

Fastest Wins

The speed of the modern game needs a modern boot to match – that’s where Veloicta 5 comes in. The boot features auxetic pattern technology which allows the perfectly fitted upper to stretch in all directions for extreme changes of direction. Built for pure pace and awesome agility, they’re a defender’s worst nightmare.

2020

RFU X Umbro

The next chapter in Umbro’s rugby history is here with the iconic double diamond worn by England once again. But it goes beyond the match day kit – Umbro provides training wear and off-field kit alongside a full range of supporter wear for men, women and children. Game on.

2020

Iraq & Ireland Back In The Family

We partner with a couple of football federations that are no strangers to winning ways in the double diamond. Ireland wore Umbro in the 1960s and then again from 1994 to 2017, while the Iraqi national team did the same in 1978 and 2007. The sponsorships include senior men’s sides, women’s teams and youth teams.  

We also become the official kit and ball sponsor of the Iraq Premier League and League Division One.

2022

Velocita Alchemist

The Velocita Alchemist brings seemingly unsustainable top speeds to players and real sustainability to boot production. Built for players that play at their own pace and create chances out of nothing, ground breaking ProWeave on the upper delivers the ultimate adaptive fit - it’s like a second skin with more raw speed and sure-footed stability.

2023

Graphene-Wear™

We teamed up with Mechanical Engineering Group Versarien PLC to introduce Graphene-Wear™ to several pieces within Pro Training Elite capsule. Graphene-Wear™ is a Graphene ink applied to the inside of garments, providing athletes with performance benefits such as thermoregulation, moisture wicking and improved air permeability. Graphene was also first discovered here in Manchester in 2004.