Despite not being very popular among football teams in other parts of the world, many Thai League football clubs have chosen orange as their team's primary color.
From Chiangrai United, Nakhonratchasima Mazda FC and PT Prachuap FC to Ratchaburi FC and Sukhothai FC, one-third of the league use orange as their main jersey color for the 2022-23 season.
What are the reasons for it? Let's dive into this question with Main Stand.
Influence from Buddhism
Buddhism is one of the reasons Thai people are so used to this particular color.
Maybe it is the habitude of seeing this color every day that it doesn't feel distinctive to the eyes of Thai people anymore. But on the other hand, orange is related to many Buddhist objects we see daily, such as Buddhist robes, mural art in the temples, and Buddhist flags.
Although it had not been written in the constitution, having 62 million Buddhists, which accounted for 94% of the Thai population, implies that it's not entirely wrong to say that Thailand is a Buddhist country.
Buddhism has existed in the livelihood of Thai people for a very long time, and its influences have affected many aspects of Thai culture, their everyday life, and their perspectives.
Not only with traditional aspects of Thai culture, Buddhism also affected Thai society's moral values, such as how Thai people believe in suppressing lust.
No matter their social class or religious belief, it's undeniably true that Buddhism has influenced every Thai person at every age, from the richest to the poorest.
Therefore, in every aspect of life, Thais have seen the orange color to the point it has become a part of their lives, so it's not surprising to see it in a football game.
Buddhism played a significant role in Thai football. For instance, in 2021, Jumpasri United appointed Phra Maha Sompong Talaputto, a famous Buddhist monk, as their honorary counselor while playing in the Thai Amateur League.
Even the Thai-owned EPL team like Leicester City had invited a monk to bless their stadium for good luck. They also released Leicester City's Pae Mai Pen' (undefeated) talisman collection.
So it is no wonder that the orange color and Buddhism play an essential role for Thai people so much that they found their way onto the Thai football field in the teams' uniforms.
Color of their province
Even though Buddhism is very prominent in Thailand, the team's choice of color might be directly derived from the provincial flag.
Most teams were established to be the symbol of their hometown, per the Thailand FA's policy of one province, one club.
What can signify their provinces in their uniform's design apart from the symbol or the team's concept? First, of course, it's the color of their province.
Orange is the color used among many province's flags, especially in northeastern regions such as Kalasin, Chaiyaphoom, Nakhon Ratchasima, Buriram, Srisaket, and Udon Thani.
All of these provinces use orange as the primary color on their flags and football clubs (Buriram FC, the junior team of Buriram United, used orange on their livery before merging with the big team).
The secondary teams from some provinces, like Nakhon Ratchasima United, also use orange as the club's main color of the club like the province's leading team.
There are also some provinces in other regions like Suphanburi, which used orange in their away uniform before changing it to navy later.
Since the boss likes it, go with it
Finding the reason for something requires supporting ideas and correlation, but sometimes it all comes down to personal preferences.
For instance, Chiangrai United FC and Ratchaburi FC use orange due to the preference of their executive directors.
The chairman of Chiangrai United, Mitti Tiyapairat, attributes this idea to a Japanese football manga called Orange.
This manga inspired the team director from a young age, so when he had the chance to form a football team, he had no hesitation in making his dream come true. As quoted in the magazine, "When your heart changes to orange, it will be forever."
In the case of Ratchaburi FC, they first used blue, inspired by their province's flag, as their club's color. But when they constantly lost games, team manager Thanawat Nithikanchana decided to change the color to orange.
"Because orange is really hard to wear," he explained. "I mean, you aren't going to wear orange daily, right? So when you spot a fan wearing orange, it means they come to cheer for the team."
"For example, a world-class team like Holland's national team has always been the most eye-catching one, so we think this might be our answer."
Many reasons explain why Thai teams use orange color jerseys. But at the end of the day, these reasons aren't as important as what the kit represents.
As long as Thai football fans don the shirt of their favorite team, that's all that matters in bettering Thai football.
Sources:
https://www.color-meanings.com/color-meanings-symbolism-thailand/
In the Mirror: Literature and Politics in Siam in the American Era (1985, Benedict R. O'G. Anderson)
https://www.silpa-mag.com/history/article_14225
https://www.komchadluek.net/scoop/496267
https://prachatai.com/journal/2013/10/49085
https://www.komchadluek.net/news/465635
https://www.posttoday.com/sports/212123
https://www.blockdit.com/posts/5c3c7e38635a5c084393e30d
