Venezia kicked off the season in style on Sunday – literally – by taking to the pitch in their new home kit for the 2024-25 season. The kit was designed by Nocta, the Nike offshoot co-designed and presented by rap superstar Drake.

It was confirmed that Drake has become an investor in the newly promoted Serie A club after joining global sports-focused firm APEX Capital. It was also announced that the Canadian rapper will sponsor the club’s kits for the 2024-25 season through Nocta.

After a turbulent week at board level, Venezia began its league season on Sunday night with a 3-1 loss to Lazio in Rome, surprising its fans by doing so in its new Drake-sponsored kit before any official images or presentation materials were released.

Shortly after news of Drake’s involvement broke, Nocta officially took over the role of Venezia’s official shirt sponsor last week after a deal was agreed between the two parties.

The club had previously had its kits supplied by Kappa, who took over the reins in 2021 and transformed the winged lions into one of the most stylish clubs in European football with the help of a series of incredibly chic ensembles created in collaboration with New York-based graphic design studio Bureau Borsche. Venezia then further cemented its haute couture reputation by showcasing its kits with high-fashion photoshoots set against some of Venice’s most glamorous views: from historic canals, cathedrals and bridges to the idyllic lagoons that surround the ancient city.

However, Venezia’s highly productive contract with Kappa ended in the summer and the club now prepared for life in Italy’s top flight by playing friendlies in plain, unbranded and unsponsored shirts.

When the new Nocta deal was green-lit, the Nike subsidiary brand hastily applied its trident logo to the same generic jerseys in time for Venezia’s Coppa Italia match against Brescia, creating a sort of “special edition” white stripe while continuing to work on putting the finishing touches on Venezia’s new collection for the 2024-25 season.

(Source: Getty Images)

An official presentation was still pending when Venezia came out of the tunnel of the Stadio Olimpico in the new Nocta home jersey and presented it to the spectators for the first time.

As you can see, the shirt maintains Venezia’s traditional club colours of black, green and orange, while the main body also features a faint rounded diamond graphic (which looks very much like it was taken from Nocta’s ‘trident’ branding). The graphic is also unusual in that it appears to only extend halfway up the torso.

A simple black button-up collar replaces last year’s gold version, and orange and green are used for trim – including a two-tone cuff and side panels that extend from below the arm to the bottom hem.

It’s certainly a feast for the eyes in its own right, but how does Venezia’s new Nocta home kit for 2024-25 compare to the best that Kappa has offered the club? We’ll be happy to judge for ourselves.