Last night saw the unveiling of Lincoln City’s brand-new home kit, with Gold Plus members enjoying an exclusive first look at a special Stacey West event in the Legends Lounge.
At half past seven, the Imps officially dropped the 2025–26 home shirt—but for the club’s Gold+ members, the reveal came a little earlier. As part of a special evening hosted by us at the Stacey West, myself and Chris had the honour of pulling the cloak off the new design live on stage, offering fans a first glimpse at the latest addition to the club’s kit history.
The evening was brilliant fun, but the highlight—without question—was seeing the shirt up close for the first time. And I genuinely love it.
This isn’t just flattery because we were involved in the reveal (although I’m sure that’ll be the accusation). One of my all-time favourite Lincoln shirts is the 1993–94 home strip, with its red and white stripes separated by a fine black pinstripe. That design always stood out to me, and it’s clear that this season’s shirt draws inspiration from that classic look.
We saw a nod to the same idea in the 2022–23 kit, but I don’t think it quite landed as well. The stripes were thicker, and the sponsor felt like it had just been dropped on top of the design without much integration. This time around, the balance is much better. The stripes are slightly narrower, which makes the red and white feel more balanced, and the black pinstripe is more prominent, giving the shirt real definition.
There’s also a brilliant hidden detail that gives the shirt extra significance. Running down from the top of the shirt is binary code, spelling out We Are Imps. It’s a tribute to George Boole, a pioneering Lincoln-born mathematician whose development of Boolean algebra laid the groundwork for the entire digital age. Without Boole, there would be no computers, no mobile phones—no modern tech at all, really. His statue outside the train station is already a local landmark, and the kit’s nod to him helps tie in Lincoln City’s heritage with the city’s intellectual legacy.
Further subtle touches include both sleeves being fully red with black trim and ribbed cuffs. The club badge, which some have dubbed “the cartoon,” is the version I prefer—it’s the one the team wore when I first started following City, and it feels nicely classic. I do realise many see it as linked to the double relegations in 1986 and 1987, but for me, I see it as the 1988 GMVC winning badge. Timing, it’s all about timing.
There are three sponsors featured: Branston Potatoes are front and centre, under their Nanotates brand. Branston will appear across all three kits this season in some form. Easy Heat Pumps continues as sleeve sponsors, while Solgaria, a new tech firm, appear on the back of the shirt.
😍 A closer look at our 2025/26 home kit
— Lincoln City FC 🇺🇦 (@LincolnCity_FC) June 5, 2025
As for the collar, the retail version will include a standard black one, adding a traditional touch. However, the player-issue shirts will feature a pinned-down collar instead, due to player preference during matches.
Early reaction on social media has been positive. It’s red and white—there’s only so far you can take a traditional design—but the subtle additions and cleaner finish make this feel like an evolution from the 2022–23 kit, and arguably an improvement on it. It also seems to have been popular from a commercial point of view – while our event was going on, the Elite Pro Sports website briefly crashed as more than 1,000 people visited for the new shirt!
Those who wish to can buy the shirt here.
Also, for the record, I don’t always like every detail on a kit. In 22/23, I wasn’t keen on the collar, I slated the 2018/19 shirt openly, and I wasn’t keen on the 2020/21 either. It’s a shame I have to do this now, just to underline I do have an actual personal opinion.
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