What year is this jersey from?
A router into the dating guides · Updated August 15, 2026
A jersey doesn't come printed with a date. Sellers guess a year from a logo they recognize, and a listing title repeats whatever number the seller typed. The tag, the collar patch, the sponsor, and the maker are the parts of the jersey that actually carry a date, and each league marks time differently. Pick your league below, then the one detail you can already see on the jersey in front of you. Each link goes straight to that detail in the full guide, not to the top of the page.
NBA
- A jock tag at the lower hem reading Made in U.S.A.
- A jock tag reading Made in Mexico of US Components
- A woven flag tag with a year printed on it
- An NBA shoulder logo that is fuzzy iron-on felt rather than a sewn patch
- A Reebok or adidas mark
- A sponsor patch above the left chest
- None of these, read the full NBA guide
NFL
- No league logo anywhere on the jersey
- A small, plain shield at the collar
- A patch reading NFL Equipment
- A small rubberized chip at the collar, no wording
- A diamond-shaped patch worn by every team that season
- A Super Bowl logo patch
- None of these, read the full NFL guide
MLB
- Flannel fabric
- A pullover front with no buttons
- A patch reading engineered exclusively for, above Major League Baseball
- The word Cooperstown on the neck label or jock tag
- A maker name you want to place in an era
- A sleeve patch you don't recognize
- None of these, read the full MLB guide
NHL
- A numbered chest size on a blue bar
- A lettered size on a gray bar
- A tag reading CCM or Koho
- A Reebok mark, or an NHL shield down at the hem
- Dimpled shoulder panels
- None of these, read the full NHL guide
Soccer
- A code on the neck or collar label, two letters plus four digits
- A six-digit style number followed by a three-digit colorway number
- A double-diamond Umbro logo and no code anywhere on the shirt
- You know the club and the shirt sponsor, but not the year
- None of these, read the full soccer guide
None of this proves a jersey is genuine. A careful counterfeit copies the correct tag for the era, and every guide here says so in its own words. What these details do is place a jersey in a window, and rule one out when the window and the claimed year disagree.