Next Tuesday (31), with the end of the last repechage matches, all the teams that will compete in the 2026 World Cup will be defined. So far, 42 places have been filled, and only six remain to complete the biggest edition in the history of the tournament. While some countries are still struggling to get their passports stamped, more than 70% of those classified have already released their official uniforms for the competition.
Just like in the last World Cups, three giants in the sporting goods sector dominate the shirts: Nike, Adidas and Puma. This time, at least for now, Adidas took the lead as the largest supplier for national teams, with 13 teams, compared to 11 for Nike and 10 for Puma.
At the Qatar World Cup, the last with the 32-nation format, the US manufacturer led with 11 shirts. Adidas produced seven, and Puma, six.
Of the 42 countries that have already guaranteed a place for the edition in North America, 34 presented their shirts, and only Ecuador has a distinct partner, the Ecuadorian company Marathon.
With the models presented so far, it is possible to identify a trend of number 1 shirts with traditional colors and shapes from each country, with uniform number 2 reserved for models that deviate from established standards.
The Brazilian team is a good example. While the main shirt maintains the color yellow, with a “canary” tone, as described by Nike, model number 2 has blue and dares to add black, unprecedented on the Brazilian jersey. The combination is the result of a partnership between CBF and Jordan, the brand owned by former basketball player Michael Jordan linked to Nike.
If the idea was to be bold in the secondary mantle, the yellow shirt’s proposal was to reinforce traditions. “Of course it’s cool to be able to experiment with different things, but, at this point, we wanted to do something that filtered down to what is most fundamental, what is most Brazil. The color, the flag and these details that Brazilians can identify”, said Brazilian designer Rachel Denti, who participated in the creation process.
“Brazil is Brazil, it doesn’t need much to be Brazil. It’s easy to identify. When you see the hopscotch, you know it’s Brazil,” he added.
The yellow shirt will be used for the first time in the friendly against Croatia, scheduled for the 31st, in the United States. Before that, the team will face France, on the 27th, with their new blue shirt. Both the Croatians and the French also wear uniforms produced by Nike.
Although Nike, Adidas and Puma make up more than 80% of the 42 teams already classified, there is a block that escapes the dominance of the giants. In this group, regional and smaller-scale brands predominate, with a few exceptions, such as Kappa, which sponsors Tunisia, and Reebok, which dresses Panama.
Brands that are part of the so-called “second shelf” in Europe also appear in this group, such as Kelme, a partner from Jordan, and Jako, a supplier from Uzbekistan.
Teams classified for the World Cup and their suppliers
Asia
- Saudi Arabia — Adidas
- Australia — Nike
- South Korea — Nike
- Irã — Majid
- Japan — Adidas
- Jordan — Kelme
- Qatar — Adidas
- Uzbekistan — Jako
South America
- Argentina — Adidas
- Brazil — Nike
- Colombia — Adidas
- Equador — Marathon
- Paraguay — Puma
- Uruguay — Nike
Europa
- Germany — Adidas
- Austria — Puma
- Belgium — Adidas
- Croatia — Nike
- Scotland — Adidas
- Spain — Adidas
- France — Nike
- Netherlands — Nike
- England — Nike
- Norway — Nike
- Portugal — Puma
- Switzerland — Puma
North America
- Canada — Nike
- United States — Nike
- Mexico — Adidas
- Curaçao — Adidas
- Panama — Reebok
- Haiti — Saeta
Africa
- South Africa — Adidas
- Algeria — Adidas
- Cape Verde — Weather
- Ivory Coast — Puma
- Egypt — Puma
- Win — Puma
- Morocco — Puma
- Senegal — Puma
- Tunisia — Kappa
