Manchester City and PUMA have unveiled the club's third kit for the 2026/27 season, created by a fan using the pair's generative AI design tool. More than 180,000 designs were submitted through PUMA AI Creator by supporters from over 200 countries, with the winning entry voted for by the club's global fanbase in January 2025.
The kit marks the first time a professional football shirt designed by a fan using AI will be worn by players on the pitch. The design, created by lifelong supporter Elliott, features a white base with a two-tone sash in sky blue and navy, with a subtle gradient that shifts as it catches the light.
How the design process worked
PUMA AI Creator launched in December 2024 as a generative AI tool that lets supporters turn written prompts into football shirt designs without prior design experience. Manchester City opened up the traditionally internal kit design process to its wider supporter community, inviting fans worldwide to submit ideas.
The submissions attracted 1.7 million ratings on the platform, with the most popular entries narrowed to a shortlist of 10 before the global fan vote decided the winner. Elliott said he created the design during his lunch break and had not expected it to become an official kit.
"City has been part of my life for as long as I can remember, so to have designed a kit that will now be worn by the players is a genuine honour," he said. He added that seeing supporters react to the design and later watching players wear it during the kit shoot made the experience feel "surreal".
From player-designed to fan-designed
The launch follows a 2025 collaboration in which Manchester City players created a limited-edition goalkeeper kit using PUMA AI Creator, which was subsequently worn on the pitch. The third kit extends that concept by handing the creative process to the club's wider fanbase.
The authentic version of the kit uses PUMA's ULTRAWEAVE fabric alongside dryCELL and ThermoAdapt technologies, and is made with at least 50% recycled material. The replica version uses PUMA's RE technology and is made with 95% recycled polyester sourced from textile waste.
Nuria Tarra, chief marketing and fan experience officer at Manchester City, said: "The relationship between the Club and our fans is at the core of everything we do, and innovation is at the heart of our partnership with PUMA. To be able to give fans the unique opportunity to be designers for a day and create one of our on-pitch kits this season, using the power of AI, is an extension of the deep connection that we have with our global fanbase."
Dominique Gathier, vice president of Teamsport at PUMA, said: "PUMA AI Creator represents a genuinely new way of thinking about how football kits are made and who gets to shape them. The volume of entries we received speaks to the strength of the Manchester City fanbase, and the design that came through reflects that. This is a project that sits at the intersection of technology, football, and community and we are proud to have been able to bring it to life."
For marketers, the campaign demonstrates how generative AI can turn customers from passive audiences into active co-creators, generating engagement at scale - 180,000 designs and 1.7 million ratings from a single prompt-based tool. The approach also shows how AI can be used to create genuine participation in brand decisions, rather than just personalizing content or automating workflows. For more on how creative teams are using these tools, see AI for Creatives and AI for Marketing.
Why this matters for marketers
The campaign offers a template for brand engagement that moves beyond voting on pre-designed options. By giving fans a generative AI tool and letting them shape the final product, Manchester City and PUMA turned kit design into a global participation event with measurable scale. The 1.7 million ratings and 180,000 submissions show the appetite for co-creation when the barrier to entry is low enough.
For marketing professionals, the lesson is not about football kits. It's about what happens when a brand hands creative control to its audience and trusts the process. The campaign generated weeks of organic engagement, a built-in launch moment, and a product with a story that can't be replicated by a traditional design brief.
Your membership also unlocks:
