Explained: Why Arsenal will wear away kit in north London derby clash with Tottenham for first time in 38 years

The Gunners typically don their traditional red and white home kit when they travel crosstown to face their local rivals Tottenham. However, the home shirt's design for the 2024-25 season has not been ratified by PGMOL to wear against their derby rivals.

According to PGMOL’s assessment, Arsenal’s current home shirt "features too much white" which could create visual confusion when Tottenham take the field in their usual white jerseys. To resolve this issue, the PGMOL ruled that Arsenal must switch to their black away kit for the match at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

While Arsenal proposed a solution of pairing their home shirt with red shorts and socks, this alternative was not approved. The referee’s body stuck with its decision that the black away kit was the best option to avoid any potential kit clash.

"The PGMOL and Premier League ruled that our 2024-25 home kit features too much white, thus clashing with Tottenham’s traditional colours, even with the option of red shorts and socks for us, which was also discussed," said Arsenal.

"As a result, for the first time in recent 'NLD' history, we'll be wearing our change colours."

The PGMOL has also confirmed that Tottenham will wear their away kit when they travel to the Emirates Stadium for the reverse fixture in January.

Arsenal’s decision to wear their away kit for the derby is not without historical precedent, but it has been 38 years since the Gunners last took to the pitch in anything other than their home kit for this specific match. According to Arsenal Shirt Collection, a fan resource on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), the last time Arsenal wore their away colours in a north London derby was during the 1985-86 season.

Mikel Arteta’s side head into Sunday's derby on the back of a 1-1 draw against Brighton. Arsenal currently sit fourth in the Premier League standings with seven points from their opening three matches. Their performances so far this season have been promising, with solid displays across the board as they aim to build on their success from the previous season. But Ange Postecoglou will undoubtedly be aiming to rally his players to put on a strong performance against the Gunners to get level on points.