The second half of the 2025-26 season has already produced a steady stream of kit reveals and leaks for 2026-27. Across the division, manufacturers and clubs are leaning on retro references, subtle details and new commercial partners.

Arsenal’s reported home shirt appears traditional at first glance but carries small refinements. The design reportedly includes a burgundy collar with a zig-zag pattern and multiple shades of red. There is also discussion that golden Premier League badges could be applied to the home attire for the campaign.

Aston Villa’s leaked home kit takes a clear step back in time. The design is said to draw on the club’s 1969 attire and will feature a sky blue collar on a polo-style shirt. The choice is notable given Villa’s position around the bottom end of the Second Division in that era and their relegation to the third tier in 1970.

Bournemouth have agreed a new multi-year partnership with Hummel, described as a club-record kit deal. The Cherries have moved away from Umbro and the new supplier will coincide with a fresh front-of-shirt partner for the 2026-27 season.

Brentford will replace Hollywood Bets with Indeed as principal sponsor. Teasers show the club retaining its classic red and white stripes while a subtle wave motif has been worked into the fabric.

Chelsea’s expected home shirt uses sharp yellow accents known as Midwest Gold to cut through royal blue. The club’s lion badge may be layered across the centre and could gain prominence if a permanent front-of-shirt sponsor is not secured. IFS, signed in February, is due to expire at the end of the season, a commercial gap that has had financial consequences for the club.

Leeds United are set to wear horizontal stripes at home for the first time in the club’s history. Designers appear to have taken some inspiration from the 2005-06 Admiral shirt, which featured vertical blue and yellow pinstripes.

Liverpool’s leaks point to a darker take on the Candy-sponsored shirt of 1989-91. That vintage coincided with the club�s last long spell of domestic dominance, capped by the 1989-90 title, a 10th crown in 15 seasons before a 30-year wait for the next.

Manchester City’s home shirt looks largely traditional with a fade from sky blue to white at the hem, which could encourage some fans to pair it with white shorts. Manchester United mock-ups featuring Bruno Fernandes attracted attention after the Red Devils’ feel-good derby victory that marked Michael Carrick’s debut of his second spell. The leaked United shirt shows a clean collar and white accents.

Newcastle’s proposed design keeps stripes as the defining element but experiments with varying bar widths and narrowing black stripes that bleed out from each large section, a pattern some observers liken to a Doppler effect visual.

Liverpool face a goalkeeper crossroads as Alisson’s long-term future at the club looks uncertain. The 33-year-old has been limited by injuries in each of the last three seasons and is heavily linked with a return to Serie A, with Juventus touted as a possible destination. That backdrop, and wider turnover at the club with Mohamed Salah reportedly leaving next month and Virgil van Dijk out of contract in 2027, means Liverpool must consider what comes next.

The most straightforward option is the player already signed as part of the succession plan. Liverpool moved for Giorgi Mamardashvili after his displays for Georgia at Euro 2024 and secured the deal from Valencia a year ahead of time. He eventually made the switch from Valencia last summer, but a patchy first season and a poor end to 2024–25 have left supporters unsure he can supplant Alisson immediately. The chance to cement his claim arrived during Alisson’s recent absence but Mamardashvili was injured himself. Logistically and financially he is the easier choice, though whether that would be Liverpool ‘settling’ for second best is another debate.

Paris Saint-Germain’s Lucas Chevalier is another name mooted. Only a year ago he was Ligue 1 Goalkeeper of the Year ahead of Gianluigi Donnarumma, and PSG paid an initial $47 million to Lille. Chevalier endured a disastrous first season with PSG, was permanently dropped at the end of January and Matfey Safonov has not relinquished the gloves. PSG could fund an approach by selling Chevalier, who might benefit from a career reset.

Emiliano Martínez has been linked with moves away before. He “basically said goodbye to Aston Villa at the end of last season,” a transfer did not materialise and he stayed. The two-time Best FIFA Men’s Goalkeeper hoped to join Manchester United last year but that is no longer an option. From an age perspective he is a short-term fix and is a few weeks older than Alisson, though he brings 211 Premier League appearances since 2020.

Finally, there are younger Premier League-proven options. Brighton & Hove Albion’s Bart Verbruggen, 23, has matched Alisson’s nine clean sheets in 2025–26 and his side have conceded 42 goals in 35 matches. Sunderland’s Robin Roefs is mentioned as a potentially more affordable alternative. Đorđe Petrović, back in the Premier League with Bournemouth, has one more clean sheet (10) than Verbruggen and Alisson as the Cherries chase their highest ever league finish.

Arne Slot was reportedly sounded out as a potential candidate to take charge of Dutch giants Ajax this coming summer. According to reporting, those enquiries were quickly unsuccessful, reinforcing Liverpool’s firm stance that Slot will remain manager.

The four-time European champions currently lie fourth in the Dutch league, 23 points adrift of champions PSV Eindhoven with only two matches of a miserable campaign remaining. Caretaker manager Óscar García is set to part ways with the club over the summer and the net of potential suitors has been cast by sporting director Jordi Cruyff. Mike Verweij of the Dutch publication De Telegraaf recently revealed that inquiries over Slot’s availability have been made by Ajax. They proved “futile.”

Verweij quoted sources who insisted: “Slot is still firmly in the driver’s seat; he’s just carrying on at Liverpool,” and added, “I also understand that Arne Slot isn’t particularly keen on joining Ajax at this point in his career.” Those lines of reporting underline a clear message from Liverpool and their decision-makers.

The club’s ownership has remained publicly unyielding even as performances have fallen from the title-winning campaign. “Fans get frustrated,” the head of Liverpool’s ownership company, Fenway Sports Group (FSG) told the Sports Business Journal this week. Boasting a majority stake in MLB franchise the Boston Red Sox as well as investment in NHL and NASCAR, Henry has developed a thick skin. “The Sox looked terrible for [their] first 25 games,” Henry continued. “I remember a plane flying overhead when we [Liverpool ] were beating Manchester United 7–0 that read ‘FSG OUT!’

“It doesn’t mean you ignore them, it means you work harder—you don’t settle for mediocrity. You have to win.”

Premier League statistics supplied in the report show the contrast between seasons:
2024–25: Games 38, Wins 25, Draws 9, Losses 4, Goals Scored 86, Goals Against 41, Goal Difference +45, Points 84.
2025–26: Games 35, Wins 17, Draws 7, Losses 11, Goals Scored 59, Goals Against 47, Goal Difference +12, Points 58.

Throughout FSG’s 16-year ownership of Liverpool, Henry has only sacked two managers: Roy Hodgson in January 2011 and Brendan Rodgers in October 2015 after a period of decline following the 2013–14 season.