Written by Mike Carter, Hull KR Shirts.
September is a calendar month that, over the last few years, has kept me on my ‘kit release’ toes. It just used to mean the end of the league phase of the season for Hull KR fans, but now it means much, much more. We have had regular appearances in the end-of-season play-off series, which should be enough to excite and motivate any Hull KR fan; however, if anyone did need any extra interest manifesting, for the 5th year in a row, Hull KR have revealed their home shirt for the following year in the month of September.
The first instance of my spider sense tingling ahead of any 2027 releases came on Tuesday 15th September, when Hull KR published a graphic to their social media channels, promoting that full season members who pay for their Membership in full could now renew theirs for the 2027 season. Behind the text was a backdrop that I hadn’t seen before; it had a white background, with contrasting grey and red lines, which appeared to form a pattern of some sort. At this stage, we didn’t know it was linked to a kit launch; however, we knew it wasn’t done by accident, didn’t we?
The start of the story…
A short 10-second video was our next ‘look’ at the launch process, published 24-hours prior to the release. The video provided a host of flashing images, and if you paused, you would get a look at a few different teasers of the new home shirt. The video also had the sound of a heartbeat over the top of it. After seeing the ‘Autonomy of the Robin’ picture included in the video, I couldn’t help but notice that the heart is central, making me wonder if this could be our first home shirt with a central crest? Couple that with the sound – it felt to me like we were witnessing the ‘Heartbeat of the Robin’ being a key marketing point here. I wasn’t far off, but I wasn’t right either.
As has become expected, the front-of-shirt sponsor usually gets involved in the teasers and Hull KR’s principal partner, Hünnebeck, for 2027 are no different. I had hoped that for 2027, their logo might be more condensed, but I did get used to it as 2026 progressed. Below is an image they shared on their Facebook page on the morning of reveal day. They’re entering the second and final year of their initial agreement with Hull KR, but it already feels like they’ve been around for much longer than that. Will they extend into a third season in 2028? We will have to wait and see.
Next up on the teaser front was OXEN, via their Official WhatsApp channel, it showed us the placement of the OXEN maker’s mark on the shirt, which appears to be just under the collar. My initial thoughts about a central crest were starting to waver at this point. I just couldn’t picture it, but really, I should have guessed what was to come next.
Prior to the full reveal, Hull KR very kindly rounded up high-quality stills from their video. It was a nice and clever way of capitalising on the momentum that the launch was creating. People were intrigued, and guesses were flying all over social media. Normally, my phone blows up after a launch. On this occasion, it was happening before it.
A little side note: I will never get bored of seeing an embroidered crest on a replica shirt. Some clubs take the ‘cheaper’ option and get them dye-sublimated in, but I am really pleased that year on year, this is something which Hull KR and OXEN choose to do on our replica playing shirts. To some, it might just be a small detail that they’re not that fussed about, but to me, it means a lot. I am quite happy to sacrifice this on some other lines, such as training tees, but keeping them on replica shirts, to me, feels like a requirement level we should never drop below.
“Home is where the Heart is”
So I was a little wayward with my “Heartbeat of the Robin” theory, but I wasn’t a million miles off, really. I was a way off with some of my thinking, though – the ‘clues’ we’d been given really confused me, but this made me happy. Sometimes things are a little bit too predictable, and even though this shirt is made up of a lot of common factors, it is quite different to anything which we have seen for some time – it mixes the past and the present in one swoop, too!
The launch stars for the home shirt are Arthur Mourgue, Tyrone May and Bill Leyland, who are all sporting similar facial hair, wear the shirt with black jeans and trainers. The photoshoot took place inside Hull City Hall, a building in the heart of Kingston upon Hull. Also present was Jack Charles, who featured across multiple media drops during the launch evening.
Now onto the shirt. The 2027 home shirt is predominantly red, and it is the first time we have seen this since 2023, assuming you’re happy for me to say that the 2025 home shirt was mostly white. I guess this is open to interpretation, but it had a red name and number set on the back, so I am using that to back up my point.
Hünnebeck, IRS, Harrison Solway and Connexin all return for 2027 in the slots we have grown to know them to take up. Naturally, the secondary colour is white, and aside from the grey detailing, these are the only colours used, which is splendid. The sponsors are known for being committed to the club and the aesthetics of the kit, and their approach here hasn’t changed one bit ahead of 2027. I always say it, and I will never stop. Thank you to them all for allowing Hull KR kits to continuously look the cleanest across world Rugby League.
The major talking points here come from the central crest and turnover collar – let’s get stuck into those. Hull KR haven’t used a central crest on a shirt since their Avec-manufactured away shirt used from 1998-00, which featured the club crest on a white ‘V’ on a blue shirt. In fact, this is now the first time it has been used on a home kit in the club’s 140-year history (to my knowledge). I am sure it will divide opinion, but I love the justification for doing it – you remember the Robin’s autonomy picture in the first video? This showed us that a Robin’s heart is at the centre of its body – and our heart, our crest, is also central on our home shirts in 2027.
The shirt features a turn-over collar on a Hull KR playing shirt for the first time since 2007. I have been bleating on about it for years and years, so I am over the moon to finally have one. We will have to wait and see if this translates to the match specification shirts, though – there have been examples of players’ match shirts being different to supporters’ replicas in the past, but I hope that they can be secured by stitching them down.
Inside the collar are the words ‘Flag Edge Touch’, a nod to our very first home in West Hull, on Gillett Street (known then as Albert Street), which is off Hessle Road. If you wish to know more about this, you can read about it on the club history page of Hull KR’s website – a great resource for any Robin wanting to know more about our past.
Our traditional band features on the shirt, but instead of housing the front-of-shirt sponsor, it is home to our club crest and a design which takes inspiration from the flagstones of our first home; the thin red strips that are included are a nice touch, too. One thing that this does help with is the way that Hünnebeck is applied. Last year I was critical of the layout of their logo in the band. The size hasn’t changed for 2027, but this time the design allows for it a lot better, with it dropping below the band rather than in it.
Replacing the Red Robin 100 jock tag from 2026 is an 1882 marker. This feels like a really subtle way of reminding people that 2027 is the club’s 145th Anniversary. The fact that this hasn’t been mentioned in the home kit release suggests to me the club have bigger plans for this yet to come. With one of the alternate shirts, maybe? It is strange how something not happening can make me think this way, but it does. Surely that feels like a great story for us to build a kit around. Remember the 2017 third shirt, also known as the 135 shirt? Could we be due a 145 shirt or a reimagined 2022 Boilermakers alternate? Exciting!
The sleeves are once again raglan and are all white with detailing which also depicts the flagstones from our first home – just like the band on the front. The University of Hull returns as a sleeve sponsor once more. Conspicuous by its absence is the Super League competition patch. Betfred are believed to have let their grasp on European Rugby League sponsorship go, meaning we are likely to have a new name as title sponsor for 2027 and beyond. I don’t even think it is entirely out of the question that the full league was renamed/rebranded, especially after the rumoured NRL investment into the northern hemisphere game. The sleeve cuffs are red and feature a recurring white flagstone pattern, which is equally meaningful and nice to look at. A win/win for sure.
The back of the shirt is very simple. The Robin icon is placed in its usual home, just below the turnover collar, in the sign-off spot. Just below is Harrison Solway’s branding, in white, along with Connexin in their lower back slot. Player names and squad numbers will be applied in white on a home shirt for the first time since 2023.
Our 2027 home shirt will be worn with red shorts and socks. The shorts have white side panels and have flagstone details in line with the sleeve cuffs. This is another consistent move to have shorts that reflect the main design pattern; also returning as short sponsors for 2027 are Westside Day Nursery and The Drain Company.
The socks also feature a broad band, which actually looks the same size as the band on the shirt, in all honesty. Above that is an oversized OXEN logo. On the back of the socks is Powertherm Site Services Ltd.
New for 2027…
Hull KR often have a full range of items lined up for a kit launch, and 2027 doesn’t disappoint – there is a hoodie, mug, cushion, towel and blanket, but most notably for the new season, there is a ladies’ cropped home shirt! As is fashion these days, crop tops are all the rage, with some ladies choosing to modify their own shirts to forge their own style and look – well, that doesn’t need to happen now with the option of a crop top included. This is something that OXEN did for Hull City for their 2026/27 home shirt, so it isn’t a surprise to me to see this included, but anyone who wasn’t aware of that may have been surprised. The options are good, and it is great to know that OXEN have their finger on the pulse of fashion trends.
I genuinely thought we were in for a home shirt that was red with a blue band for 2027. Mostly due to the fact that our 2007 shirt was like that, and historically the club have been known to mark such anniversaries with nods to the past. I am open to the idea of things happening with a bit more randomness, though – predictable isn’t always bad, but if there is a banger lined up, why put it off because of something in the past? It feels like kit design is due to take a move away from looking at kit history and forging its own path soon. These things happen in cycles, and I am sure it will swing around in the future.
It did get me thinking, though. Did us qualifying for the World Club Challenge change things? We had a belter of a red-and-blue shirt for that, which would have made an awesome 2027 home shirt – if that was the case, then I’ll happily take it. What a kit. What a night!
If we are looking back into our kit history, then this reminds me a little bit of our 1999 home shirt by Avec. If it were me picking, I think I would have had red sleeves on this shirt, too and really gone for it. I do understand that our brand is red and white now. This kit is certainly bold and could be a sign of things to come.
This launch has been really cool for me personally. It kept me guessing all the way through, and even then, I didn’t really get anywhere near what the shirt would actually look like in my mind. I enjoy the journey as much as I ever have!
The full 2027 home kit range can be viewed and purchased directly from Hull KR at this link and from the retail store at Sewell Group Craven Park.
Up the Robins!