Middlesbrough Honors History With Blue Kit Against Wolves

Middlesbrough will wear a special blue kit at the Riverside against Wolverhampton Wanderers as part of the club's 150th fixture celebration, while manager Kim Hellberg confirmed defender Alfie Jones will miss the match and the following game.

The anniversary kit pays tribute to Middlesbrough's first team colors from 1876, when the club was formed. According to GazetteLive, the dark blue design is linked to the side's earliest playing identity before the famous red shirts were adopted.

Hellberg said Jones, who has been absent since a calf issue, is nearing a return but will not feature against Wolves or Stoke City. According to Yahoo Sports, the defender has made seven appearances in all competitions this season and scored once.

"Alfie is on his way back but will not participate in the games this week. But he is getting closer to being back." said Kim Hellberg, Middlesbrough head coach.

Jones was substituted during Middlesbrough's 4-3 win over Norwich City because of the injury and has missed the team's last two matches. The defender joined Middlesbrough in 2025 from Hull City and remains under contract until the summer of 2029, according to Yahoo Sports.

Former Gazette Boro writer Anthony Vickers researched Middlesbrough's shirt history in his book Threads of History. He explained that the club's early colors came from its origins as a group connected to Middlesbrough Cricket Club.

"Football came out of like a primordial soup really. There were no sports manufacturers. And it was just a group of mates from Middlesbrough Cricket Club getting together to play this relatively new sport during the winter months." said Anthony Vickers, former Gazette Boro writer.

Vickers described how the founders created an early uniform using cricket clothing before changing its appearance. His research examined archive records covering the club's development before entering the Football League in 1899.

"They set up the club and then it was a question of: ‘What shall we play in?’ Of course, they're all toffs, they're all public schoolboys, so it wasn’t a problem for them to come up with a uniform because they had their cricket whites." said Anthony Vickers, former Gazette Boro writer.

Vickers said the first blue kit was created by dyeing existing cricket whites, though the appearance was not fully consistent. Middlesbrough later moved through several kit designs before settling on red shirts in 1902.

"They decided to dye it blue in their first year. But if you see the picture, they're all different shades of blue. It's certainly not uniform!" said Anthony Vickers, former Gazette Boro writer.

The historian said there is no confirmed reason for choosing blue, but archive research suggests a possible connection with the De Brus family crest, which featured blue and black imagery in the local area.

"The blue didn't last very long, but obviously made a cultural impact. It’s not officially known why, but there are suggestions that the blue, and the later blue-and-black-hooped kit were inspired by the blue and black family crest of the De Brus family." said Anthony Vickers, former Gazette Boro writer.

Vickers added that Middlesbrough's shift toward red happened gradually after repeated kit changes during early Football League seasons. The color became familiar after red was used as an alternative kit for several years.

"Red had been a regular second kit for about five or six years before that. But in those days the regulations were fairly lax." said Anthony Vickers, former Gazette Boro writer.

The club's changing colors did not create major controversy in its early years because Middlesbrough had not yet developed the same long-standing traditions associated with modern football clubs.

"What I always find fascinating, comparing it to the modern day, is that there wasn't a big fuss about it." said Anthony Vickers, former Gazette Boro writer.

Vickers' book explores Middlesbrough's identity through its historic shirts and includes research into previously uncovered aspects of the club's past.

"It’s a brilliant book. I did so much research for it and delved into all sorts of aspects of the club’s history that have never been covered before." said Anthony Vickers, former Gazette Boro writer.

Middlesbrough will wear the limited edition blue kit for the Wolves match as the club marks its anniversary with a design connected to its earliest football history.