Leinster Rugby have revealed their brand new European jersey that the four-time Heineken Champions Cup winners will wear as they pursue their fifth European crown in 2018/19.
The shirt is a departure from the classic Leinster shade of blue, and instead opts for a colourway that Adidas is calling ‘Night Navy’
In addition the jersey is covered in what looks like a light blue pinstripe pattern that runs vertically down the front, back and sleeves of the design. In fact closer inspection reveals that the stripes are actually the names of all the counties of Leinster written in the old Irish alphabet, ogham.
Keep an eye on Rugby Shirt Watch for our review of the new Leinster European shirt soon, and for our full round up of all the new 2018/19 European jerseys as they are released.
Rugby Shirt Watch 
Have to say I’ve been disappointed with Adidas and their first Leinster offerings. A European shirt that has never looked more like a football shirt, in a completely new shade. A home jersey with no yellow / gold trim (surely gold stars!?), stars not centred above the crest, and transfers instead of embroidery all give me a feeling of lower quality. An away jersey that’s a radical departure (I’m not against using the away shirt for a bit of wild experimentation, just wish I’d liked it!), and looks like it’s come from an army surplus store. I’ve bought my father the home shirt so have had the chance to see it up close and it’s grown on me slightly …. but not enough to buy one. This is sounding more negative than I’d intended, but I really had high hopes!
One thing we would say about the point you made about the badges being transfers as opposed to stitching – the heat-bonded badges Adidas use are EXTREMELY durable. We’ve had shirts for five-plus years that have been through hundreds of washes and the badges still look like new – they also don’t soak up a load of excess water which is handy.
Fair points, and great to hear the durability is good for the badges, I do think it feels less premium though. And of course we are paying a premium price! Since I wrote the above I must admit I’ve decided to get the euro home shirt. It is a massive departure….. but it’s grown on me 🙂