Urawa Reds’ First Official Match Shirt, 1992
Urawa Red Diamonds, commonly known as Urawa Reds, are one of the clubs selected as part of the J.League’s original “Original 10” when the league was established in 1992.
Today, the club is known around the world for having one of the most passionate fanbases in Japanese football.
The name “Red Diamonds” combines the club’s color, red, with the image of a diamond representing strong unity and brilliance.
When you hear the phrase “Urawa Reds’ first shirt,” many football fans would probably think of this one:
Urawa Reds’ 1993 J.League inaugural-season shirt
But there was actually an official match shirt worn by Urawa Reds before that.
And that is the 1992 model featured in this article.
The Day Urawa Reds Played Their First Official Match
On September 5, 1992, around six months before the J.League officially kicked off in 1993, the Yamazaki Nabisco Cup began.
This was an official competition held in preparation for the launch of Japan’s first professional football league, the J.League.
And for Urawa Red Diamonds, this tournament marked the club’s first-ever official match.
The historic match was played at the former Omiya Soccer Stadium.
Urawa Reds welcomed JEF United Ichihara as their opponents and played their first official match as a club.
The players wore this shirt during that historic game.
Urawa Reds’ first-ever official match shirt, 1992
The combination of red, black, and white makes the design particularly striking.
The bold use of red and black is especially eye-catching.
The black was reportedly intended to represent the diamond in the club’s name.
The back of the shirt is much simpler, featuring the red that became synonymous with Urawa Reds.
Compared with the 1993 J.League inaugural shirt, this design has a very different kind of early Urawa Reds identity.
The Shirt Was Made by PUMA
This 1992 model uniform was manufactured by PUMA.
For international fans who know the modern Urawa Reds, it may be interesting to discover that PUMA was the club’s shirt supplier during its early years.
And this shirt has another fascinating detail.
The shirt numbers and chest numbers feature a distinctive three-dimensional German-style Gothic font, reminiscent of the fonts commonly seen on German football shirts.
This unusual font gives the shirt a strong early-1990s football aesthetic.
Who Started Urawa Reds’ First Official Match?
Urawa Red Diamonds’ first official match was a historic moment for the club.
The starting XI for that match was:
GK
Takashi Tsuchida
DF
Trivisonno
Shinji Tanaka
Yukinori Muramatsu
MF
Satoshi Mochizuki
Atsushi Natori
Eiji Sato
Osvaldo Escudero
FW
Kazuo Ozaki
Koichi Hashiratani
Masahiro Fukuda
These 11 players played an important role in the early history of Urawa Reds.
The 1992 Nabisco Cup Had Very Different Rules
The 1992 Yamazaki Nabisco Cup was played under rules that were quite different from modern football.
There were no draws in the group stage.
If a match was level after 90 minutes, it went into extra time.
At the time, the competition used a sudden-death system known as V-GOAL, with the first team to score in extra time winning the match.
If the game was still undecided, it went to a penalty shootout.
There was also another unusual rule: a win was worth four points.
And if a team scored two goals within 90 minutes, it received one additional bonus point.
For international fans who only know modern football rules, this may sound like a very unusual tournament.
Personally, I have always found the old V-GOAL system particularly fascinating.
How Did Urawa Reds Perform?
Urawa Reds played in the group stage of the tournament and finished with a record of five wins and four losses.
They finished fifth out of 10 teams and narrowly missed out on the knockout stage, which was reserved for the top four teams.
But for the club, the most important thing was not simply how far they progressed in the competition.
Urawa Red Diamonds had been established, and the club had stepped onto the pitch for an official match for the very first time.
This 1992 shirt records that historic moment.
Differences Between the Retail and Player Versions
Another fascinating detail for football shirt collectors is the difference between the retail and player versions.
The retail version featured the team name “Red Diamonds” printed on the chest.
However, the player version featured “GALANT”, the name of a Mitsubishi Motors vehicle, as the main chest sponsor.
There was also a difference in the placement of the team crest.
On the player version, the club logo was positioned on the left sleeve.
These small differences are one of the great pleasures of collecting early-1990s J.League shirts.
JEF United Ichihara’s Shirt Is Nostalgic Too
Incidentally, JEF United Ichihara, Urawa Reds’ opponents in that historic first official match, were also wearing their 1992 away shirt.
And the sponsor on the chest was none other than SEGA.
For fans who remember the 1990s, this is an especially nostalgic combination.
Urawa’s “Red Diamonds” and JEF’s “SEGA”.
It perfectly captures the unique atmosphere of Japanese football just before the J.League era began.
A Shirt That Predates the Famous J.League Inaugural Model
Urawa Reds’ 1993 J.League inaugural shirt is, of course, an important piece of the club’s history.
But if you trace the club’s history back even further, you arrive at September 5, 1992—the date of their first official match.
That means this 1992 model was the first shirt Urawa Reds wore in an official match.
It is not only a window into Japanese football on the eve of the J.League’s launch, but also a historical shirt that records the true beginning of Urawa Red Diamonds as a football club.
This model is extremely difficult to find today.
For anyone interested in the history of Urawa Reds, it may even be more fascinating than the better-known 1993 model.
Urawa Reds’ first shirt wasn’t actually from 1993.
Knowing that one fact alone can make collecting Urawa Reds and early J.League shirts even more fascinating.
