Why is Belgium wearing a blue and pink jersey vs. Spain?

[ASFN Admin]

You usually associate Belgium with red uniforms, not the light blue and pink they've been wearing, but there's a cool reason why they're wearing these special kits for their biggest game of the World Cup.

On Friday, Belgium took on the Spain in the quarterfinals, with a trip to the semifinals on the line. While Spain took to the pitch in their iconic red jerseys, Belgium went with their away kit, which features a light blue background and pink half circles all over it.

What's the reasoning behind this odd combination for Belgium? Per to the Royal Belgian Football Association, it's to honor artist René Magritte and the Belgian Surrealism movement.

The new away kit is a tribute to Belgian artist René Magritte and the art movement known as Belgian Surrealism. The light blue, pink, and white kit features black details. Fitting the theme of surrealism, the eye-catching graphic print will trigger the imagination and spark conversation. The print is a playful nod to Magritte’s work. Others will recognize elements of the RBFA crest, or symbols of the game of football, like the ball and lines of a pitch. A twist on Magritte’s The Treachery of Images ‘Ceci n'est pas une pipe’ (This is not a pipe) is visible as subtle detail in the neck of jersey: “Ceci n'est pas un maillot” (This is not a jersey).

It's the same jersey and kit they wore against the United States. Pretty awesome!

This article originally appeared on For The Win: Why is Belgium wearing a blue and pink jersey vs. Spain?

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