Hockey India has explained why it decided to replace the national teams’ traditional blue jerseys with saffron kits for the 2026 FIH Hockey World Cup. The clarification comes after the announcement sparked widespread debate and criticism, including from former India men’s captain Viren Rasquinha.
On July 27, Hockey India unveiled the new jerseys through a video on social media, confirming that both the men’s and women’s teams would sport saffron as their primary colour during the World Cup, which will be held in the Netherlands and Belgium next month.
Responding to the backlash, Hockey India said on July 30 that the change was made for practical reasons rather than aesthetic ones.
According to the federation, the traditional blue jerseys blended too closely with the blue synthetic hockey turf, making it difficult to distinguish players during matches. The switch to saffron, it added, is intended to improve on-field visibility for players, officials and spectators.
‘Saffron symbolises courage, sacrifice, and national pride’
“We wish to inform you that the decision to change the uniform colour was based on recommendations from, and detailed consultations with, the support staff and players. The primary consideration was technical. It was observed that the blue playing uniform tended to blend with the blue synthetic playing surface, which is now the standard colour for international hockey pitches. This visual similarity affected on-field clarity and visibility for the players,” Hockey India said in a statement.
“In light of the above, the coaches and players suggested alternative colours, such as yellow or saffron. After careful consideration, saffron was finalised. Apart from addressing the technical requirement, saffron holds deep significance as one of the colours of our National Flag, symbolising courage, sacrifice, and national pride.
“It may also be noted that changes to jersey colours are not unprecedented in Indian hockey. From time to time, the national team’s playing kit has been modified to meet functional and other requirements. For instance, during the 2014 FIH Hockey World Cup, the team’s jersey was changed to yellow, and during the 2018 FIH Hockey World Cup, it was changed to sky blue with a completely different design,” the statement added.
“The present change to saffron was implemented after considering both the technical feedback received from the coaches and players and the symbolic value associated with the colour being part of our National Flag,” the statement concluded.
