Chelsea will roll out a new look at Everton this weekend, and there is no mystery about the timing. Saturday’s lunchtime Premier League fixture at the Hill Dickinson Stadium brings the first use of the club’s 2026/27 third kit, a white strip with blue trim and red pinstripes, clearly designed to lean on nostalgia while pushing a fresh commercial launch.

Xabi Alonso’s side travel north after a 5-1 win over Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge, a result that put them back into rhythm following a three-week international break. This is also their first trip outside London this season, which gives the occasion a little extra weight beyond the usual kit reveal exercise.

The new Chelsea third kit is made by Nike and comes with a retro club crest on the left side of the shirt. Next to it sits the gold “World Champions” badge, a reminder of last summer’s Club World Cup success. Chelsea will wear that badge on all kits until the next edition of the competition in 2029.

The full strip includes white shorts and white socks with blue trim. The design points directly at Chelsea away kits from the 1980s and 1990s, with a deliberate nod to the 1992/93 away shirt. That strip was divisive at first, then became a cult classic.

The club line is that it will “celebrate more than 30 years since both Nike and the Blues emerged as global football powerhouses”. That is marketing language, but the visual references are obvious enough.

Chelsea’s away kit usage has already been mixed this season. They wore the home strip in the 3-2 win at Fulham and in the defeat at Arsenal. The black away kit with neon yellow detailing was used in the 3-0 loss at Brentford.

All current Chelsea kits carry USDC by Circle as the front-of-shirt sponsor after a one-year agreement with Circle Internet Group was finalised in August. Once again, Chelsea started the season without a main shirt sponsor, then moved quickly to close the gap.

Now they head to Everton with a new shirt, a recent 5-1 win behind them, and a clear attempt to turn presentation into momentum.