Editing British & Irish Lions (section)

===Colours and strip===
For more than half a century, the Lions have worn a red jersey that sports the amalgamated crests of the four unions. Prior to 1950 the strip went through a number of significantly different formats.<ref name="Lionsstripes">{{cite web |title=Lions Change Their Stripes |url=http://www.lionsrugby.com/history/412.php |website=Lions Rugby |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080607011421/http://www.lionsrugby.com/history/412.php |archive-date=7 June 2008 |date=17 April 2005}}</ref>

====Unsanctioned tours====
In 1888, the promoter of the first expedition to Australia and New Zealand, [[Arthur Shrewsbury]], demanded "something that would be good material and yet take them by storm out here".{{sfn|Bath|2008|p=76}} The result was a jersey in thick red, white and blue hoops, worn above white shorts and dark socks. The tours to South Africa in 1891 and 1896 retained the red, white and blue theme but this time as red and white hooped jerseys and dark blue shorts and socks.{{sfn|Bath|2008|p=76}} The 1899 trip to Australia saw a reversion to red, white and blue jerseys, but with the blue used in thick hoops and the red and white in thin bands. The shorts remained blue, as did the socks although a white flash was added to the latter. The one-off test in 1999 between England and Australia that was played to commemorate Australia's first test against [[Matthew Mullineux|Reverend Matthew Mullineux]]'s British side saw England wear an updated version of this jersey.{{sfn|Bath|2008|p=76}} In 1903, the South Africa tour followed on from the 1896 tour, with red and white hooped jerseys. The slight differences were that the red hoops were slightly thicker than the white (the opposite was true in 1896), and the white flash on the socks introduced in 1899 was partially retained.{{sfn|Bath|2008|p=76}} The Australia tour of 1904 saw exactly the same kit as in 1899. In 1908, with the Scottish and Irish unions not taking part, the Anglo-Welsh side sported red jerseys with a thick white band on tour to Australia and New Zealand.<ref name="Lionsstripes" /> Blue shorts were retained, but the socks were for the first time red, with a white flash.

====Blue jerseys, the Lions named and the crest adopted====
{{multiple image
|align = 
|total_width = 280
|image1 = Logo Lions Rugby.svg
|caption1 = Lions crest adopted in 1924
|image2 = Lions Badge.PNG
|caption2 = Lions logo until 2023 
|image3 = British & Irish Lions logo (2023).svg
|caption3 = Lions logo introduced in 2025 
}}
The Scots were once again involved in Tom Smyth's 1910 team to South Africa. Thus, dark blue jerseys were introduced with white shorts and the red socks of 1908.{{sfn|Bath|2008|p=76}} The jerseys also had a single lion-rampant crest. The 1924 tour returned to South Africa, retaining the blue jerseys but now with shorts to match. It is the 1924 tour that is credited as being the first in which the team were referred to as "the Lions", the irony being that it was on this tour that the single lion-rampant crest was replaced with the forerunner of the four-quartered badge with the symbols of the four represented unions, that is still worn today. Although the lion had been dropped from the jersey, the players had worn the lion motif on their ties as they arrived in South Africa, which led the press and public referring to them as "the Lions".{{sfn|Bath|2008|p=1}}

The unofficial [[1927 British Lions tour to Argentina|1927 Argentina tour]] used the same kit and badge,<ref name="Lionsstripes" /> and three heraldic lions returned as the jersey badge in 1930.<ref name="Lionsstripes" /> This was the tour to New Zealand where the tourists' now standard blue jerseys caused some controversy. The convention in rugby is for the home side to accommodate its guests when there is a clash of kit. The New Zealand side, by then already synonymous with the appellation "All Blacks", had an all black kit that clashed with the Lions' blue. After much reluctance and debate New Zealand agreed to change for the Tests and New Zealand played in all white for the first time. On the [[1930 British Lions tour to New Zealand and Australia|1930 tour]] a delegation led by the Irish lock [[George Beamish]] expressed their displeasure at the fact that while the blue of Scotland, white of England and red of Wales were represented in the strip there was no green for Ireland. A green flash was added to the socks, which from 1938 became a green turnover (although on blue socks thus eliminating red from the kit), and that has remained a feature of the strip ever since.{{sfn|Bath|2008|p=77}} In 1936, the four-quartered badge returned for the [[1936 British Lions tour to Argentina|tour to Argentina]] and has remained on the kits ever since,<ref name="Lionsstripes" /> but other than that the strip remained the same.

====Red jerseys====
The adoption of the red jersey happened in the 1950 tour. A return to New Zealand was accompanied by a desire to avoid the controversy of 1930 and so red replaced blue for the jersey with the resultant kit being that which is still worn today, the combination of red jersey, white shorts and green and blue socks, representing the four unions.<ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/rugby_union/article6531017.ece Lions name is a source of great pride]{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} ''[[The Times]]'' 19 June 2009</ref> The only additions to the strip since 1950 began appearing in 1993, with the addition of kit suppliers logos in prominent positions. Umbro had in 1989 asked for "maximum brand exposure whenever possible" but this did not affect the kit's appearance. Since then, Nike, Adidas and Canterbury have had more overt branding on the shirts, with sponsors [[Scottish Provident]] (1997), [[NTL:Telewest|NTL]] (2001), [[Zurich Assurance|Zurich]] (2005), [[HSBC]] (2009 and 2013),{{sfn|Bath|2008|p=77}}<ref name="2013jersey">{{cite web |url=http://rugbyshirts.net/2013-british-lions-shirt-launched-6200.html |title=2013 British Lions Shirt Launched |date=29 October 2012 |access-date=29 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121101031139/http://rugbyshirts.net/2013-british-lions-shirt-launched-6200.html |archive-date=1 November 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Standard Life Aberdeen|Standard Life Investments]] (2017), [[Vodafone]] (2021)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.punditarena.com/rugby/bbarry/lions-new-jersey-2017-new-zealand/ |work=Pundit Arena |title=Pics: Lions Release New Jersey Ahead of 2017 Tour To New Zealand |date=1 November 2016 |access-date=4 October 2017 |archive-date=5 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171005050604/http://www.punditarena.com/rugby/bbarry/lions-new-jersey-2017-new-zealand/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and Howden (2025).<ref>https://www.howdengroupholdings.com/about-us/sponsorship/lions</ref>

====Kit suppliers and shirt sponsors====
{| style="width:500px; float:Left; padding-right: 1em; text-align:center"
|-
|valign=top width=90%|
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ British & Irish Lions kits
|-
! Period
! Kit manufacturer
! Shirt sponsor
! Tour Destination
|-
| colspan=4 align=center style="line-height:12px;" |<span style=" font-size:80%;">'''Amateur Era'''</span>
|-
| 1983
| -
| -
| New Zealand
|-
| 1989
| -
| -
| Australia
|-
| 1993
| Nike
| -
| New Zealand
|-
| colspan=4 align=center style="line-height:12px;" |<span style=" font-size:80%;">'''Professional Era'''</span>
|-
| 1997
| rowspan=5 | Adidas
| Scottish Provident
| South Africa
|-
| 2001
| NTL:
| Australia
|-
| 2005
| Zurich
| New Zealand
|-
| 2009
| rowspan=2 | HSBC
| South Africa
|-
| 2013
| Australia
|-
| 2017
|rowspan=3|Canterbury
|Standard Life Investments
| New Zealand
|-
| 2021
|Vodafone
| South Africa
|-
| 2025
|Howden
| Australia
|-
|}
|}
{{clear}}

====Jersey evolution====
<ref name="Lionsstripes" />
{|
|{{Football kit box|pattern_la=_redbluehoops|pattern_b=_redbluehoops|pattern_ra=_redbluehoops|leftarm=FFFFFF|body=FFFFFF|rightarm=FFFFFF|shorts=FFFFFF|socks=000066|title=1888}}
|{{Football kit box|pattern_la=_thinredhoops|pattern_b=_thinredhoops|pattern_ra=_thinredhoops|leftarm=FFFFFF|body=FFFFFF|rightarm=FFFFFF|shorts=000066|socks=000066|title=1891–1896}}
|{{Football kit box|pattern_la=_redwhitehoops|pattern_b=_redwhitehoops|pattern_ra=_redwhitehoops|pattern_so=_2_white_stripes|leftarm=000088|body=000088|rightarm=000088|shorts=000066|socks=000066|title=1899–1904}}
|{{Football kit box|pattern_la=|pattern_b=_whitehorizontal|pattern_ra=|pattern_so=_white_band_color|leftarm=FF0000|body=FF0000|rightarm=FF0000|shorts =000066|socks=FF0000|title=1908}}
|{{Football kit box|pattern_la=|pattern_b=_collarwhite|pattern_ra=|pattern_so=_whitetop|leftarm=000099|body=000099|rightarm=000099|shorts=FFFFFF|socks=FF0000|title=1910–1938}}
|{{Football kit box|pattern_la=|pattern_b=_collarwhite|pattern_ra=|pattern_so=_greentop|leftarm=FF0000|body=FF0000|rightarm=FF0000|shorts=FFFFFF|socks=000099|title=1950–present}}
|}