Retro Villarreal Shirt – The Yellow Submarine Rises

Villarreal CF was founded on 10 March 1923, growing out of the football culture that was sweeping Spain at the time. For decades the club lived a quiet existence in the regional and lower national divisions, representing a city whose identity was rooted in agriculture and, increasingly, the ceramic tile manufacturing industry that would eventually give the stadium its modern name.

The modern transformation of Villarreal began in earnest in 1997 when Fernando Roig, a businessman who had made his fortune in the Mercadona supermarket chain, took over as president. Roig's investment was calculated and intelligent rather than reckless. He hired smart coaches, built a coherent scouting network, and within two years Villarreal had earned promotion to La Liga for the first time in their history.

The early 2000s saw the Yellow Submarine establish themselves as a genuine top-half La Liga club, but the 2005-06 season elevated them to legendary status. Under Manuel Pellegrini, Villarreal reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League – an achievement that stunned Europe. They dispatched Everton, Rangers, Benfica, and Internazionale before losing heartbreakingly to Arsenal on away goals, with goalkeeper Jens Lehmann saving Juan Román Riquelme's penalty in the dying moments of the tie.

The club won the Copa del Rey in 1999-2000 under Víctor Fernández, which remains a landmark domestic honour. They also claimed the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 2003 and 2004, giving the club genuine European experience and credibility.

After Pellegrini's departure, the club went through turbulent years, including a shocking relegation in 2012 – a genuine gut-punch for a fanbase that had grown accustomed to European football. But Villarreal bounced back with typical resilience, winning the Segunda División title and returning to La Liga within a single season.

The crowning glory came on 26 May 2021 in Gdańsk, when Unai Emery's Villarreal defeated Manchester United on penalties in the Europa League final. Goalkeeper Gerónimo Rulli saved David de Gea's spot-kick to hand the Yellow Submarine their greatest ever trophy. It was a moment that crystallised everything the club represents: ambition, perseverance, and the ability to compete with the very best despite every structural disadvantage.

Villarreal's history is illuminated by players who chose the Yellow Submarine at pivotal moments in their careers and repaid that faith spectacularly.

Juan Román Riquelme stands above all others in the club's folklore. The Argentine playmaker arrived on loan from Barcelona in 2003 and his two seasons at Villarreal were among the finest of his career. His vision, his passing, and his extraordinary dead-ball technique made him the creative heartbeat of Pellegrini's side. His penalty miss against Arsenal in 2006 remains one of football's most agonising moments, but nothing diminishes what he gave to the club during those magical years.

Diego Forlán arrived in 2004 and immediately justified his move from Manchester United, winning the European Golden Boot in consecutive seasons (2004-05 and 2008-09). A prolific, technically gifted striker, Forlán became one of the most feared forwards in La Liga and a genuine Villarreal icon.

Robert Pires chose Villarreal after leaving Arsenal, spending two seasons in yellow and bringing genuine Champions League pedigree to the squad. His technical quality added another layer of quality to an already impressive squad.

Gökhan Inler, Santi Cazorla, and later Gerard Moreno have all been talismanic figures. Cazorla's return to the club after his severe injury recovery is one of football's most heartwarming stories – he came back from career-threatening ankle surgery to perform at the highest level again.

Gerard Moreno was the fulcrum of the 2020-21 Europa League triumph, scoring crucial goals throughout the campaign. Managers such as Manuel Pellegrini, Marcelino, and Unai Emery have each left lasting imprints on how the club plays and thinks about itself.

The Villarreal retro shirt is defined first and foremost by that luminous yellow – the colour that earned them the Yellow Submarine nickname and made them instantly recognisable across European football.

Through the 1990s, as the club climbed the divisions under Roig's stewardship, their kits reflected a more functional, workmanlike aesthetic typical of the era. Simple yellow shirts with coloured trim, basic collar designs, and the region's ceramic industry spirit embedded in the club's DNA rather than its fabric.

The early 2000s kits – particularly those worn during the Riquelme and Forlán era – are among the most prized by collectors. The 2005-06 Champions League season shirts carry enormous emotional weight: yellow with blue trim, relatively clean in design, worn during one of the most remarkable European runs by a club of Villarreal's size. The away shirts from this period, often blue or white, are equally desirable.

Kit sponsors have included names synonymous with Spanish commerce and sport, and the shirt cuts evolved from the baggier styles of the late 1990s to the tighter, more athletic fits of the mid-2000s.

The 2020-21 Europa League winning kit – the jersey worn in Gdańsk – will inevitably appreciate significantly in collector value as the years pass. A yellow shirt with clean blue detailing, it represents the club's greatest ever night and is already becoming an iconic piece of football memorabilia.

With 39 retro Villarreal shirts available in our shop, collectors can trace the club's entire modern journey through fabric.