The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: 2026 MLS Kits

Feb 17, 2026 - 00:00

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The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: 2026 MLS Kits

With the 2026 MLS kits officially released, we rank them in our latest installment of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.

It’s that time of year when MLS clubs and adidas reveal a whole range of new kits, and that means we get to eat. I’ve sifted through them all, analyzing them for the latest edition of our The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly series. From beauties like Inter Miami to downright disgraces like Nashville, let’s tuck in and review them all.

The Good

Atlanta United

Inspired by the 1996 Olympics medal design, this Atlanta United kit is fantastic. An off-white base color complemented by gold detailing and a beautiful green stripe down the side is a top notch design that doesn’t try too hard.

Charlotte FC

The Carolina blue on this shirt is loud, loud enough for me to sit up and listen. The crown pattern used on the neckline trim and sleeve cuffs really elevates the shirt. I love it.

Chicago Fire

Traditional, yet effective. I tossed and turned over adding this to the good section due to the white section across the middle, and I settled on the fact that the classic collar saves it. A nice shade of red that pays tribute to the Chicago Fire’s history. I’m in.

Colorado Rapids

Black shirt? Good start. Add a multi-colored collar and sleeve cuffs to jazz thing up bit and you’re starting to speak a bit of my language. Simple base design, elevated with some exciting details. This one is good.

Columbus Crew

I’d say this is top two from the whole collection. Black and yellow is a good combination, especially when you mix it with such a classic collar and sleeve trim. Beautiful stuff. Identity, reinforced.

DC United

This is a big yes. All black base with hints of red. That’s it. Sorted.

Inter Miami

It’s a bit of a cheat code to have your base colors as pink and black, just ask Palermo. There’s a reason they’re such a cult hero. Inter Miami have reversed this colorway for this kit, and it’s working. A button-up collar, too? Mamma Mia-mi.

New York City

It’s a bit of James Bond and a bit of Jay Gatsby all rolled into one for a team right out of the city that never sleeps. A team from the Big Apple deserves the finest, and this is it. Brilliant.

New York Red Bulls

Venture across the city, and you get the New York Red Bulls. People aren’t typically a fan of Red Bull-owned clubs, but I won’t open that can of worms. My placement of this kit in the good section might be biased, because it gives me a mix of Stranger Things and Mount Vesuvius, which happen to be two of my favorite things.

Orlando City

Purple and yellow shouldn’t work. But on this shirt, I am having it. Maybe I’m just feeling a bit jazzy today. Yes.

Philadelphia Union

A kit with a pattern of the Declaration of Independence with imagery of the Founding Fathers? If you’re going to do a kit for an American team, then this is how you do it.

Real Salt Lake

Unlike FC Dallas’ shirt, which we’ll get to momentarily, this is a properly done blue and red hooped shirt.

Seattle Sounders

Oh, yes. The colors on this shirt are beautiful and the neck and sleeve trims are just delightful. A top, top shirt.

Vancouver Whitecaps

See above. Great work.

The Bad

Austin FC

This is the type of kit that’d make a bit of noise because it’s somewhat different. However, it misses the mark. While it’s not entirely ugly, it looks like it should be used as a wrapper for some form of spearmint-based candy. I don’t like it. And I’m always right.

FC Dallas

For some reason, this shirt does not work for me at all. The sublimated pattern across the shirt is terrible, and it looks like some knock off you’d see being hawked in a stall at a Fourth of July parade. All that said, it’s not a total disaster, and I can definitely see people liking this iteration of a tried-and-true football shirt design.

LAFC

The idea isn’t bad. Gold and black are a strong combination. However, this execution doesn’t quite hit the mark. The Art Deco pattern doesn’t hit for me, and it seems like a missed opportunity when you have two incredibly strong colors.

LA Galaxy

It’s classic LA Galaxy, but that’s it. The sash, though, is not hitting the vibe at all. The random glitch in the middle of it is the main culprit. Overall, it just feels a bit stale.

Minnesota United

If they didn’t have the sash caused by the pattern ending, then this shirt would be decent. A design choice that screams “I am trying so hard to be different,” but misses the mark entirely when doing so. Overdoing it.

New England Revolution

What in the comic book fight scene is this?!

San Jose Earthquakes

Tie-dye? In the big 2026? I get that they’re paying tribute to the Grateful Dead, but there’s better ways to do so. See: Nike SB.

St. Louis City

If this didn’t have the weird material effect on it, it’d look less like a curtain on a terrible award show stage and instead, it’d be a decent kit.

Toronto FC

This feels medieval. Do you get what I mean?

The Ugly

Cincinnati FC

The only thing good about this kit is the collar trim and sleeve trim, but they’re not powerful enough to overcome the geometric pattern. A terrible shirt. A pattern like this on a football shirt can be difficult to get right, and this one is certainly far from the mark. Blech.

Houston Dynamo

Hahahahahahahahaha.

Sporting Kansas City

I can’t believe this got signed off by professionals. It’s terrible. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but it looks like it belongs in a rogue knock-off arcade game. The diamonds pattern offends me every single time I look at it.

CF Montreal

Not for me, at all. I respect it for being so bold, but I don’t like it at all. The abstract pattern would work better if they didn’t split it into stripes, to be honest. I’ll take my payment for the design consultancy via bank transfer, please.

Nashville SC