Manchester United to wear ivory third kit for Premier League opener at Hull City

Manchester United will wear their ivory third kit — not their blue away strip — when they open their Premier League campaign at Hull City’s MKM Stadium on Saturday at 12:30pm.

The choice was confirmed by the club on their official website earlier in the week. Hull’s black and amber home colours are the driving factor: United’s third kit, which features a hand-drawn rose design inspired by the Salford Lads Club, provides the required contrast where the away shirt would not.

The ivory number has already had one outing. United wore it in their final pre-season friendly against AC Milan last weekend, losing 4-2 despite Harry Maguire putting them ahead inside two minutes.

The kit is one of three United unveiled ahead of the new campaign, alongside the traditional red home shirt and the blue away strip. Snapdragon sponsors all three for a third consecutive season, though the third kit carries a subtle difference: rather than the company’s name, it displays only the Snapdragon logo at the base of a cleaner three-pronged design, with the adidas badge and a more minimalist United crest above it.

The last time United started a league season in their third kit was a decade ago, when Jose Mourinho’s side beat Bournemouth 3-1 on the opening day of the 2016/17 campaign. Juan Mata, Wayne Rooney and Zlatan Ibrahimovic were on the scoresheet that afternoon. The club referenced the occasion in their kit announcement, expressing hope that the new ivory shirt could “bank its own piece of history 10 years on.”

Beyond the kit, the Hull fixture could mark the competitive debuts of summer signings Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans. Both started against Milan in pre-season, with Tielemans completing the full 90 minutes, and Michael Carrick’s side will be looking to the pair to contribute from the off as United begin life under their new head coach.