2003/04 · Home

After two seasons with white panels cutting through the hoops, Reebok went back to orthodoxy: clean hoops all the way round, a brighter green and just one liberty, the green area around the collar. PT on the chest, Banco Espírito Santo on the back.

This is the shirt of a house move. On 6 August 2003 Sporting opened the Estádio José Alvalade XXI with a 3-1 win over Manchester United, the night a departing Cristiano Ronaldo gave John O’Shea such a runaround that the English club closed the transfer days later. With Fernando Santos on the bench, the first season in the Euro 2004 stadium ended in third place, without trophies, but with the old 1956 Alvalade left behind for good.

Here at Hoopster, this shirt opened a new home and changed Ronaldo’s destiny on the same night.