Why Arsenal may not wear their home kit in the Champions League final

Arsenal have qualified for the Champions League for the first time in two decades, but their red shirts still may not grace Europe’s greatest stage.

Regardless of the final’s outcome, Arsenal stand to record their best finish in the Champions League since they were denied by Barcelona in 2006.

They wore a yellow change strip in that match as goals from Samuel Eto’o and Juliano Belletti cancelled out Sol Campbell’s opener.

If Arsenal lift the Champions League on May 30, they may not do so in their iconic scarlet home strip.

Due to the peculiarities of the bracket system employed by UEFA in the Champions League knockout rounds.

As Arsenal were drawn into the Blue bracket, which saw them dodge the likes of Real Madrid and Manchester City en route to the final, they will be considered the away team.

Even though the final will be played on neutral ground in Budapest, one team must serve as the away side for administrative reasons.

This means that they will be the team to don a change strip should there be a kit clash.

This will certainly be the case if they face Bayern Munich, whose home kit is red and white. The Gunners could also opt to wear an away strip if they face PSG in the final, though this seems unlikely.