Tottenham Hotspur has partnered with British-Nigerian artist and designer Yinka Ilori to reimagine its 2026/27 away shirt, in a collaboration that puts his trademark colour, pattern and storytelling onto one of the most visible canvases in contemporary design. The shirt, titled 'We Are Tottenham, Wherever We Go', was unveiled in early November 2026.

Ilori grew up on Essex Road in Islington, and his connection to the club has deepened through his role as artist-in-residence at Heart of Hale, a mixed-use regeneration project in Tottenham Hale. The design draws on the area's diverse identity and sense of community: a deep navy base is raked with streaks of pink, violet, orange and electric blue, while the code 'THFC LDN17' nods to the club's N17 postcode. The back is equally layered, with lilac petals, chequered rings and turquoise bands surrounding the acronym 'COYS', short for the supporters' chant 'Come On You Spurs', alongside a line from another terrace song and the collection's title.

For Ilori, the project is less about football itself than about what happens around it. He has described the work as a celebration of belonging and of football's power to bring people together, and of the unity found in standing on the terraces chanting alongside thousands of others. The approach fits a practice built over a decade and a half on making art and design accessible, from playgrounds and laundrettes to public installations.

The shirt caps a productive period for the artist. In September he released 'Chairman', a book tracing the chair practice that first made his name, with an exhibition gathering a decade of those chairs due to open in Islington. Last year he was appointed a Royal Designer for Industry by the Royal Society of Arts and launched the Yinka Ilori Foundation, which aims to create playful, inclusive and sustainable community spaces for children and young people.