Celtic in embarrassing kit mix-up as error in Hoops player shirts flagged

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Celtic’s Adidas kit deal has been proved to be popular with the club.

Working with the biggest sports supplier in the world has been beneficial for the club financially, bringing more finances to benefit Brendan Rodgers – in theory, at least.

Some fans saw it as an improvement too, whilst others have been critical of prices and a perceived overload of ‘limited edition’ merchandise releases.

Amid a period of fans being vocally unhappy, one recent merchandise drop was kept under the radar by Celtic.

But forget what fans are wearing – what players were wearing in one fixture has received attention – for some fairly embarrassing reasons.

Celtic players wear two different versions of Hoops home kit

There is a trend of Celtic players wearing long sleeves at the minute – but surely that should be the only variation among players’ jerseys?

READ MORE: Brendan Rodgers reacts to bizarre question about Celtic fans boycotting the Europa League

When buying official club jerseys, customers have the options of buying the fan version or the authentic version, with subtle differences in design and material between the two.

The product difference has become commonplace within football as suppliers look to balance optimal performance with availability for supporters.

However, in a bizarre revelation, it has been noticed that players wearing long-sleeve versions of the kits don’t actually have the authentic version.

According to kit experts Footy Headines, the fan versions were identifiable by their stitched three stripes, which extended further than the supposed ‘authentic versions.’

In the Betfred Cup win over Partick Thistle, the likes of Sebastian Tounekti and Arne Engels were wearing the cheaper editions of the Hoops.

It was suggested that this could perhaps be due to Celtic not being in the top tier of Adidas’ affiliated clubs – the Hoops are listed as a “local elite” side, rather than “global elites” such as Arsenal and Real Madrid.

How does this season’s Celtic trio of kits compare to others?

Celtic’s kits from Adidas have been a mixed bag.

The 2025-26 selection is an example of that. There haven’t been many complaints about the home kit, which features a tartan pattern in the Hoops.

The away kit, which the Hoops wore in Wednesday’s Europa League draw with Red Star Belgrade, has been fairly popular thanks to its ‘bumble-bee’ design.

The third kit, less so. It features a green and white hooped design similar to a home shirt, but with an unusual template which can only be described as resembling a hand-written drawing of a Celtic shirt. It unsurprisingly hasn’t been worn yet.