The Ultimate Guide to Football Jackets, Windbreakers and Training Tops

Every football fan eventually discovers that the shirt is only half the wardrobe. The other half is outerwear: the track jacket your dad wore to away games, the anthem jacket players wear for the line-up, the windbreaker that lives in your bag from September to May, and the quarter-zip training top that somehow goes with everything.

The trouble is that the names are confusing. Shops use “track top”, “training jacket”, “pre-match jacket”, “drill top” and “shell” almost interchangeably, and the differences between them matter when you are choosing what to buy. This guide explains each type of football jacket and training top in plain English – what it is, what it is made for, how it should fit, how to layer it and how to look after it – so you can pick the right piece for the way you actually live.

In this guide

1. Football jackets at a glance
2. Track jackets: the original football jacket
3. Anthem jackets: made for the line-up
4. Windbreakers: light protection for changeable weather
5. Drill tops and quarter-zips: the training-ground classic
6. Tracksuits: the full set
7. Knit vs woven: why the fabric changes everything
8. Retro or modern: two very different looks
9. Matching the jacket to the occasion
10. Which football jacket should you choose?
11. How to layer football outerwear for British weather
12. How football jackets should fit
13. How to wash and care for football jackets and training tops
14. Frequently asked questions
15. Find your layer

Football jackets at a glance

Type	Construction	Best for	Typical fit	Layering role
Track jacket	Knit fabric, full zip, often ribbed cuffs and collar	Everyday wear, travel, terrace style	Regular, comfortable	Outer layer in mild weather, mid-layer in cold
Anthem jacket	Full zip, smart finish, often a stand-up collar	Matchdays, smart-casual outfits	Regular to slightly relaxed	Outer layer
Windbreaker	Light woven fabric, often with a hood	Wind, showers, changeable days	Relaxed, roomy enough to layer	Outer shell
Drill top	Quarter- or half-zip pullover	Training, warm-ups, everyday layering	Close to regular	Mid-layer or standalone top
Tracksuit	Track jacket with matching trousers	Travel, relaxed days, coordinated looks	Varies by design	Complete outfit

Track jackets: the original football jacket

The track jacket is where football outerwear began. A tracksuit, as Wikipedia’s overview of the garment puts it, is simply trousers and a jacket – usually with a front zip – designed to keep athletes warm before and after exercise. The jacket half became a fashion item in its own right.

Adidas’s own history of the garment, “The history of the tracksuit”, describes how the brand began producing a technical warm-up suit with a textile maker in 1966, released its first models in 1967 and named one style after Franz Beckenbauer. By 1969, according to the same account, the West German national team was wearing matching tracksuits for training and warm-ups. From there, the track top travelled from the pitch to the street.

What makes a track jacket

Most track jackets are made from knitted fabric, which is why they feel soft and move with you. Typical details include a full-length zip, a stand-up or ribbed collar, ribbed cuffs and hem, side pockets and contrast stripes or panels down the sleeves. They are not designed to keep out heavy rain; their job is warmth, comfort and freedom of movement.

Why fans love them

Track jackets carry decades of football culture. In the UK, the “casuals” who emerged on the terraces in the late 1970s – as Wikipedia’s entry on the casual subculture explains – made European sportswear brands part of football identity. Highsnobiety’s history of terracewear traces how tracksuits and track tops from Italian labels became status symbols among travelling fans. Today a retro track jacket is one of the easiest ways to bring that heritage into an everyday outfit.

Anthem jackets: made for the line-up

An anthem jacket is the jacket players wear during the pre-match line-up, while the anthems are played. The sports-culture site nss sports describes them as the outer layer worn in the pre-match phase, when teams line up to listen to and sing the anthems. They are often worn for only a few minutes, but because they are seen by millions of viewers, clubs and kit manufacturers design them to look sharp.

Anthem jackets became a recognisable category in the 2010s. SoccerBible covered adidas’s Champions League anthem jackets for Real Madrid, AC Milan and Chelsea in 2011, and the same brand dressed several national teams in anthem jackets for the 2014 World Cup. Some teams have even used them to carry messages: before a friendly against Wales in November 2020, the United States men’s team wore jackets reading “Be the Change”, as Sports Illustrated reported.

How anthem jackets differ from track jackets

The line between them can blur, but anthem jackets usually look more “finished”: bolder graphics, a cleaner collar, more premium-looking trims and designs that change every season to match the kit. Track jackets tend to follow a classic, repeatable template. In practice, an anthem jacket is the smarter choice for a matchday or a night out, while a track jacket is the everyday workhorse.

Track and anthem jackets

Windbreakers: light protection for changeable weather

A windbreaker is the jacket you want when the weather cannot decide what it is doing. Wikipedia defines a windbreaker as a thin fabric jacket designed to resist wind chill and light rain, usually made from synthetic material. Unlike track jackets, windbreakers are generally woven rather than knitted, which gives them a smoother, crisper feel and helps block the wind.

Windbreakers are not raincoats

It is worth being clear about this. A windbreaker is designed for wind and light showers, not for standing in a downpour for ninety minutes. Some outdoor brands sell fully waterproof shells with taped seams, but a typical football windbreaker is about lightness, packability and style. If you regularly stand in heavy rain, wear a dedicated waterproof coat and save the windbreaker for drier days. Always check a product’s own description for what it is designed to do.

Why they work so well for fans

Windbreakers fold small, weigh very little and can be thrown over any shirt in seconds, which makes them perfect for British spring and autumn. Many have hoods, and retro colour-blocked designs add a burst of colour to otherwise simple outfits. Our windbreaker collection includes everything from 1990s-inspired colour blocking to modern minimalist shells.

Drill tops and quarter-zips: the training-ground classic

A drill top is a football training top with a short zip at the neck. Major manufacturers use the name for their half- and quarter-zip training tops, and they are what you will see players wearing for warm-ups and training sessions. Dictionaries define a quarter-zip as a top with a short zip running down from the collar, roughly a quarter of the garment’s length; a half-zip simply runs further down the chest.

Why the drill top is so useful

A drill top sits somewhere between a T-shirt and a jacket. It is usually slim enough to wear under a jacket, warm enough to wear on its own on a mild day, and smart enough to look intentional rather than lazy. The zip lets you adjust warmth and show a collar or T-shirt underneath. For many fans, it is the most-worn football item they own.

Drill top vs track jacket

	Drill top	Track jacket
Zip	Quarter or half zip, pulled over the head	Full-length zip, worn open or closed
Fit	Closer to the body	Regular, more room underneath
Role	Mid-layer or standalone top	Outer layer or mid-layer in cold weather
Best with	Jeans, joggers, cargos, under a coat	Shirts, T-shirts, jeans, tracksuit bottoms
Feel	Sporty, technical	Heritage, terrace style

If you want one piece to layer under coats all winter, choose a drill top. If you want a jacket you can throw on over a football shirt, choose a track jacket. Browse our full range of drill and training tops.

Tracksuits: the full set

A tracksuit pairs a track jacket with matching trousers. Its cultural history is rich. Wikipedia’s tracksuit entry notes that in 1980s Britain many young fans wore tracksuits to matches, and that shell suits followed in the late 1980s. The same decade saw hip-hop adopt the tracksuit too, most famously with Run-DMC’s “My Adidas” in 1986.

Full set or split?

Wearing both halves together is the boldest option and works best when the design is clean and the colours are strong – think of a navy or black set with a single contrast stripe. Splitting the set gives you more outfits: the jacket with jeans one day, the trousers with a plain sweatshirt the next. Our styling guide has more ideas for wearing tracksuits both ways.

Knit vs woven: why the fabric changes everything

Most of the differences between football jackets come down to one question: is the fabric knitted or woven?

Knitted fabrics are made from interlocking loops of yarn. As Wikipedia’s entry on knitted fabric explains, knits can stretch in all directions, while woven fabrics only stretch along the bias unless they contain elastane. That is why track jackets and drill tops feel flexible and comfortable when you move.

Woven fabrics are made by interlacing threads at right angles. They are more stable, hold their shape well and are better at blocking wind, which is why windbreakers and shell jackets are woven.

In simple terms: choose knit for comfort and movement, woven for wind protection and a crisper silhouette.

Retro or modern: two very different looks

Football outerwear has changed shape over the decades, and the era you choose changes the whole feel of an outfit.

Retro jackets – roughly the late 1980s to the early 2000s – tend to be boxier and longer in the body, with bold colour blocking, big contrast panels, oversized collars and confident graphics. They were designed in an era when sportswear was getting louder, and they look best worn with relaxed jeans or wide trousers. A 1990s track jacket over a plain white T-shirt is about as easy as football style gets.

Modern jackets are usually slimmer and more streamlined, with cleaner graphics, tonal detailing, technical-looking fabrics and more subtle branding. They sit closer to the body, which makes them easier to layer under a coat, and they pair naturally with tapered joggers or slim jeans.

Neither is better; they simply do different jobs. Many fans keep one of each: a retro jacket for weekends and a modern piece for training, travel and colder days. If you are drawn to the older designs, our jackets collection and tracksuits include classic shapes from several decades.

Matching the jacket to the occasion

• Matchday at the stadium: an anthem jacket or track jacket over your shirt, with a windbreaker in your bag if rain is forecast.
• Watching at the pub: a track jacket worn open over a shirt or polo is relaxed but tidy.
• Training or five-a-side: a drill top for the warm-up, ideally with a light windbreaker on cold evenings.
• Travel days: a tracksuit or a track jacket with comfortable trousers – easy to wear for hours and smart enough for arrivals.
• Everyday outfits: a track jacket or drill top with jeans and trainers works almost anywhere.
• Smart-casual plans: a clean, dark anthem jacket over a polo with tailored trousers.

Which football jacket should you choose?

1. You want one jacket for everyday wear: a track jacket. It goes with shirts, T-shirts and jeans and suits most weather from spring to autumn.
2. You want to look smart on matchday or a night out: an anthem jacket.
3. You live somewhere windy and showery: a windbreaker, ideally with a hood, worn over a drill top when it is colder.
4. You want a layer to wear under coats all winter: a drill top or quarter-zip.
5. You want a complete, coordinated outfit for travel or relaxed days: a tracksuit.
6. You love football history: a retro track jacket or tracksuit from a classic era.

How to layer football outerwear for British weather

Outdoor brands talk about the base, mid and outer layer, and the same idea works for football clothing. The trick is not wearing more layers but wearing the right ones.

• Base layer: a T-shirt, long-sleeve tee or football shirt.
• Mid layer: a drill top or a track jacket, for warmth.
• Outer layer: a windbreaker for wind and showers, or a heavier coat on very cold days.

A practical cold-matchday combination is a long-sleeve tee, your club shirt, a drill top and a windbreaker on top. You can remove layers as the stadium fills up and warms up, and the zips on each piece let you fine-tune your temperature.

Windbreakers and drill tops to layer

How football jackets should fit

Fit depends on how you plan to wear the jacket:

• Shoulders: the shoulder seam should sit at or just beyond your natural shoulder. Too narrow and the jacket will pull when you move.
• Sleeves: cuffs should reach your wrist bone with your arms by your sides; ribbed cuffs can sit slightly longer because they gather.
• Length: track and anthem jackets usually finish around the hip. Windbreakers are often a little longer and roomier to fit over other layers.
• Room to layer: if you plan to wear a drill top or hoodie underneath, make sure you can zip the jacket comfortably over it. Consider sizing up for windbreakers you will layer.

Check our size chart and compare with a jacket that already fits you well. Measuring chest width and sleeve length on a favourite jacket is the most reliable way to choose a size online.

How to wash and care for football jackets and training tops

Sportswear lasts much longer when you treat it gently. The UK consumer organisation Which? recommends a few simple habits for washing sports and gym clothes:

1. Air sweaty kit before washing rather than leaving it in a bag.
2. Wash garments inside out.
3. Wash synthetics separately from heavy cottons and towels.
4. Use less detergent than you would for everyday laundry.
5. Skip fabric conditioner, which can affect technical fabrics.
6. Choose a sportswear, synthetics or delicate cycle at a low temperature.
7. Air-dry rather than tumble-dry.

Above all, follow the care label on your garment – it always takes priority over general advice. Zip jackets up before washing to protect the zip teeth and other items in the drum, and avoid ironing directly over printed badges and logos.

Frequently asked questions

What is an anthem jacket?

An anthem jacket is the jacket footballers wear during the pre-match line-up while the anthems are played. They are designed to look smart on camera and are often updated each season to match the kit.

What is the difference between a drill top and a track jacket?

A drill top is a quarter- or half-zip training top that you pull over your head and usually wear as a mid-layer. A track jacket has a full-length zip, a little more room and is typically worn as an outer layer.

Are windbreakers waterproof?

Windbreakers are generally designed to resist wind and light rain rather than to be fully waterproof. For heavy rain, choose a dedicated waterproof coat and always check the product’s own description.

What is the difference between a track jacket and a windbreaker?

Track jackets are usually knitted, soft and stretchy, made for warmth and comfort. Windbreakers are usually woven, lighter and crisper, made to block wind and light showers.

What should I wear for football training in winter?

Use layers: a base layer or T-shirt, a drill top or track jacket for warmth, and a windbreaker or waterproof on top. Remove layers as you warm up.

Should I size up in a football jacket?

Size up if you plan to wear thick layers underneath or want a relaxed fit, especially with windbreakers. Stay true to size for track and anthem jackets you will wear over a shirt or T-shirt.

How do I wash a football jacket?

Follow the care label first. Generally, zip it up, turn it inside out, wash at a low temperature with less detergent and no fabric conditioner, and air-dry it rather than tumble-drying.

Find your layer

The right football jacket depends on how you live: a track jacket for everyday comfort, an anthem jacket for matchday style, a windbreaker for unpredictable weather, a drill top for layering and a tracksuit for the full coordinated look. Most fans end up owning more than one – and once you understand the differences, building a wardrobe that works in every season becomes easy. If you want to know where this all came from, our look at why retro football shirts are so popular covers the culture behind it.