The new Athens Kallithea FC shirts begin with an idea before they become a design: a continuation of the Athenian club’s attention to detail that has made its kits some of the most distinctive in recent years. At the centre of the project is Ted Philipakos, the club’s president and creative director, formerly brand director at Venezia FC. Last season, as football moved through its familiar cycle of constant releases, Athens Kallithea FC – together with technical partner Kappa – chose not to introduce new kits. The club stepped away from the industry’s excess production and towards a different idea of what a shirt can become: something made to last. The previous collection remained available for two seasons, reaching 62 countries across six continents.
The 26/27 collection marks the club’s return, celebrating sixty years since its foundation. Five neighbourhood football sides came together in 1966 to form the club that exists today, a history reflected in the five stars above the “AK” monogram. The visual language remains unmistakably AKFC: restrained, considered, built around a quiet sense of elegance. The home shirt is deep blue, with groups of debossed vertical lines – five in each set, a reference to the club’s origins. The away shirt reverses the composition, with a white base crossed by horizontal blue stripes. Both shirts feature the logo of EMST, the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Athens, continuing a collaboration now in its fourth year between the club and the cultural institution. Technical production remains with Kappa, with the design developed by Munich-based studio Bureau Borsche.
Visualizza questo post su Instagram
The collection is accompanied by “Apopse” – “tonight” in Greek – a short film shot on 16mm at the “El Paso” stadium after dark. There are no players. Katerina Mageraki, trained at the Greek National Opera, and actor Konstantinos Georgalis move through a dance duet choreographed by Nikos Kalivas, set to “Apopse”, the 1963 song written by Mimis Plessas and performed by Tzeni Vanou.