KitSZN: The Bold and the Psycloid
The Cherry Bombs exploded onto the scene in 2026, the Riveters new Psycloid kit, Minnesota Aurora’s Pride kit and Ballard/Salmon Bay’s - “The Melendez Kit”. This is the episode for those wanting to be bold and authentic to themselves and the club they represent.
The Cherry Bombs exploded onto the scene in 2026 - let’s explore how they looked in their inaugural season. Then checking in on the Riveters new Psycloid kit, Minnesota Aurora’s Pride kit and Ballard/Salmon Bay’s yearly artist designed kit - “The Melendez Kit”. This is the episode for those wanting to be bold and authentic to themselves and the club they represent.
Ballard FC/Salmon Bay: The Meléndez Kit
The Ballard FC/Salmon Bay FC "Meléndez" Kit for 2026. Earned a score of 4.63 from the team.
Are you looking for something bold? Are you looking for something interesting? Are you looking to make a statement? If so, this is the kit for you.
If you have been paying attention to Ballard/Salmon Bay over the years, you certainly noticed their annual artist collab kit. This season's Melendez Kit is just that kit for 2026. Victor Melendez is an art director, graphic designer and illustrator from Seattle who was originally from Mexico City.
Using a combination of the nature found in the PNW and his Mexican heritage, Melendez has found his own unique style. Prominently shown is that skull - often found on ofrendas during Dia de Los Muretos.
This is the first kit we have seen that uses a 3D glasses effect to change the kit in different ways. What looks mainly like a sugar skull shirt on a Yellow base. The club worked with Hummel to implement an anaglyph design that can only be seen with 3-D glasses. It truly found its form with the bright Blues, Yellows, and Reds: when you put it in red light, you see an eyeball coming out of an apple, and when you put it in blue light, you see it within the flowers blooming.
Oh, like the Sarah Robbins kit from 2025 - this comes with a lenticular crest.
This thing is one of a kind and truly creative. Without a doubt, we understand it may or may not be somebody's taste. But if you are a true collector and you love having kids that have meaning and have creative outlooks, this is the shirt for you
Our Score: 4.63
Minnesota Aurora: Pride Kit
The Minnesota Aurora "Pride" Kit for 2026. Earned a score of 4.75 from the team.
Minnesota has done it again. They made a true Aurora pride kit with beautiful stars in the sky and pointing out the different constellations. Designed and modeled by @danirogersdesign this kit is a beautiful nod to the power and energy of the LGBTQ+ Community.
It's a sharp-looking shirt to begin with, and adding the rainbow effect on the Aurora Borealis makes this truly a one-of-a-kind shirt that speaks to the Minnesota Aurora.
If you're looking for something more subtle but still showing pride, this is exactly the shirt that you wanted. It doesn't throw up rainbows or throw everything into your face. The subtle nod to what Love truly is is a beautiful take that everybody in the universe truly deserves.
Our Score: 4.75
Pittsburgh Riveters: Psycloid Kit
The Pittsburgh Riveters "Psycloid" Kit for 2026. Earned a score of 3.88 from the team.
The lava lamp of soccer shirts is finally here.
The Pittsburgh Riveters released their secondary kit called the "psycloid" kit. With a White base, this shirt accentuates different unique shapes that represent the diversity of a team. Together, they create something moving and beautiful.
This kit fully embraces the energy and momentum the women's team are seeing. A tribute to constant motion and an unstoppable drive, we get this collage of color that pops. These hypocycloid shapes represent the sparks of this new era. Sticking with a White Base we get those hypocycloids in a gradient of colors. We got Peach, Orange, and Pinks coming together in a geometry of color.
Our biggest complaint, if we had to have one, was: Is this truly a Pittsburgh kit? Or is this just a kit that could be for any team pushing forward and gaining momentum?
This shirt is meant to represent all of that, and you could easily change the badges, and any team could use the same description. Other than that, it is a great shirt for any collector to own and wear with pride.
Our Score: 3.88
Cherry Bombs FC: The Rebel Kit
The Portland Cherry Bombs FC "Rebel" Kit for 2026. Earned a score of 4.00 from the team.
The Cherry Bombs are coming out with a bang in their inaugural season, and we are 100% here for it!
This shirt has a Blacked-out base layered with a collage of pure rebellion. With an all Black Base with silhouettes of Pink roses, records and lightning underneath. This is where Portland Punk meet "riot grrrl" energy. This one’s for the away days, dive bars, basement shows, and cities that don’t know what’s coming. It’s a whole Cherry Bombs mood, part mixtape, part manifesto.
For example, you have record players spinning, too-loud roses with thorns, women's soccer players mid-strike, musicians mid-set, cherries mid-explosion, lipstick mid-smear; this is pure punk rock, and I am 100% behind the push to blend the underground punk rock scene with the soccer mindset.
Maybe it's just as a millennial (Fox), but there's just something so bold and beautiful about pushing forward and having chalk outline designs throughout the entire kit. The Cherry Bombs are definitely making a statement in this kit, and they are not waiting for permission to make something sick.
Our Score: 4.00
Cherry Bombs FC: The Fuse Kit
The Portland Cherry Bombs FC "Fuse" Kit for 2026. Earned a score of 4.25 from the team.
The Fuse kit is what you get when the Cherry Bombs explode.
Bursting from the crest, this kit is loud and full of energy. While bringing energy, this kit is impossible to ignore. Utilizing two tones of Pink to give off an explosion effect radiating from the crest. This is all outlined with White cuffs and collar.
The shirt is "fast, loud, and a little unhinged," as they say in their description, and you will be seen everywhere you go when you rock this kit. Even the explosion throughout the kit has beautiful curved lines, not straight jagged ones.
This fearsome shirt is bold, beautiful, and powerful. This is exactly what you would want from an inaugural season team showing off their creative skills while also being subtle enough to make a statement and look classy.
Our Score: 4.25
Cherry Bombs FC: The Spark Kit
The Portland Cherry Bombs FC "Spark" Kit for 2026. Earned a score of 3.13 from the team.
I don't know if I'm allowed to use the word subtle when talking about a Portland Cherry Bombs FC kit, but this one is the most subtle option you have among the three kit options.
The shirt's White base is bold and clean, while the Pink diamonds radiate with a bit of pixelation, giving a cool, spark-like look. This is a clean shirt that still makes a huge statement without being as loud as the others.
The bold Black cuffs and collar really pop against the white shirt and are an excellent choice for anyone who likes a clean, classic style.
Our Score: 3.13
However you choose to be bold, any of these options above certainly come off as some of the most creative kits you will find in world football. From punk rock, to 3D effects, Psycloids and the Aurora Borealis - it's time to get bold.
You can check out the full episode here on YouTube or Spotify:
