Although London boasts more professional football clubs than any other city in England, Manchester has often been referred to as the capital of football in the United Kingdom. It is home to the UK's biggest football club in Manchester United and the current dominant force in the sport in Manchester City. Both clubs are the only two English sides to have won the treble, too.
In addition to United and City, there are several other professional football clubs in and around the region, including Stockport County and Salford City. The entire city is crazy for football and as a result, there is a high demand for classic and retro football shirts. If you are looking to buy some retro football shirts in Manchester, then here is everything you need to know.
Where to buy retro football shirts in Manchester – best four options
Classic Football Shirts Manchester
Classic Football Shirts is a shop on Deansgate in Manchester that is specifically dedicated to selling retro football kits, jumpers and jackets. The shop is the original Classic Football Shirts store and has been going strong for several years now. It currently boasts more than 2,000 genuine vintage shirts with fans able to order online or browse in-store.
Their Manchester United and Manchester City collections are unrivalled, however, you will be expected to part with large sums of money for their rarest shirts.
Stunner
Although Classic Football Shirts have dominated the Manchester market for retro football shirts over the past five years, other shops have started to pop up across the City. One of the best alternatives to Classic Football Shirts is a shop called Stunner on King St in the City centre.
The brand was created in Kyiv but has since moved to Manchester due to the conflict in Ukraine with the two owners of the store fleeing the warzone in 2022. The shop isn't the biggest but it contains some gems when it comes to classic football attire. They specialise in Serie A, Bundesliga and La Liga kits but also sell plenty of English shirts.
Retro football shirts in Manchester United Megastore
Ever since the phenomenon of buying retro football shirts swept across the nation, there was an acceptance that football clubs would try to profit from it. One club who were never going to miss out on such an opportunity were Manchester United, who have become a commercial powerhouse since the turn of the century.
Via their Megastore, which is located at Old Trafford just outside the stadium, fans are able to purchase a variety of retro United shirts from over the years. Current offerings include home and away shirts from the 1998/99 treble-winning season and a home strip from 1963. If shirts aren't your thing, then they also sell retro Manchester United jackets and tracksuits.
Retro football shirts in Manchester City Megastore
Manchester City have also jumped on the retro shirt bandwagon in recent years and now offer their supporters the opportunity to buy classic City kits from years gone by via their Megastore at the Etihad Campus. City fans are often accused of only becoming supporters of the club since their fortunes improved in 2008 but retro kits have given their fans an opportunity to either learn more about the history of the club or to potentially silence these critics.
The Brother-sponsored shirts have proven to be particularly popular with City fans, and the club currently have multiple versions of these kits for sale. For fans who want to go even further back, they are also offering plainer get-ups, including the home 1972 shirt and the away 1969 shirt – the black and red jersey they wore at Wembley when they won the FA Cup for the fourth time.