New York Cosmos: Back In Black

America’s relationship with football (no, we ain’t calling it the S word) has always been vexed to say the least. However, despite that, in the history of association football no team has been cooler than New York Cosmos.

In its heyday (the mid-to-late 70s) they boasted Pele, Franz Beckenbauer, Carlos Alberto and Giorgio Chinaglia in their ranks. By day they developed a brand of sexy football, by night they partied at Studio 54 and hung out with the likes of Andy Warhol.

Dormant since 1985, the club was reborn last year and appointed Eric Cantona director of soccer (eurgh) earlier this year. The colourful Cantona declared the Cosmos a “mix between football and art”.

And it’s this fusion between football and pop culture that Cosmos kit sponsors Umbro celebrates in its new range of shirts for the club. Launched today (13 July) and marking the 34th anniversary of the New York blackout, this black-on-black range builds on the myths of that night – a pivotal night in the development of hip hop according to our hip hop friends – and feeds it into Cosmos’s already formidable backstory.

Now available exclusively in Selfridges and from selected independent retailers next month, the kit reworks the original Cosmos design and mirrors its new white design.