New York City FC II unveiled a new home jersey ahead of the start of the 2025 MLS NEXT Pro season and it's the organization's first-ever Pigeon Kit.
That's right, the urban fowl that's become an organic and very unofficial NYCFC mascot is now front and center on NYCFC II's new kits, taking the place of the official NYCFC II club badge. The "put a bird on it" approach to design continues to be popular in the year 2025.
To answer what may be the first question that comes to some people's minds: Yes, you can buy yourself a Pigeon Kit, here at this link while supplies last. Before shipping and taxes, the jersey is going for $99 for adult sizes and $89 for youth sizes, and only replica versions of the kit are available to purchase, so don't expect to see an MLS NEXT Pro logo on the sleeve when you order yours.
NYCFC II wore these same snazzy white-with-blue-pinstripes kits last season, though without this new pigeon crest. The pigeon is referred to as "a new secondary logo" for the II team, with the bird described by the team as "representing the upward trajectory and development of the team and its players," with the "II" Roman numerals used in place of the pigeon’s feet, a subtle detail you might not notice without the team drawing attention to it.
The new Pigeon Kits are notably the latest new NYCFC jerseys released in 2025 that do not feature the redesigned club badge that debuted in September 2024. That new crest won't be on a First Team kit until 2026. NYCFC II does have its own redesigned club crest, with those Roman numerals dropped in neatly to differentiate between the First and Second teams – but that crest is taking a backseat to the organization's biggest embrace of the pigeon to date.
The new NYCFC II home kits represent another departure from last season in that they're actually for sale. In 2024 your only chance of snagging a NYCFC II kit was heading to a game at Belson Stadium in Jamaica, Queens, and asking for a sweat-soaked handout from one of the Baby Blues when they were done playing.
Oliver Strand
The tide might be turning in 2025, with more of the non-independent MLS NEXT Pro teams beginning to sell their official on-field merchandise. Colorado Rapids 2 announced earlier this week that their new 2025 jerseys will be available for purchase throughout the MLS NEXT Pro season, and there are likely other teams in the Division III league who will sell you their kits in 2025.
The pigeon is in for NYCFC II and it's readily for sale, though as of 2024, the team's president and CEO, Brad Sims, was on the fence about having NYCFC embrace the city's most omnipresent bird.
He told Hudson River Blue in a March 2024 interview "As it pertains to the pigeon, I don’t know that we’re ever going to get a consensus. I think pro-pigeon, anti-pigeon feelings with our fanbase is like 51%-49%, or 53%-47%, or 55%-45% one way or another....I’m actually scared to go on record by saying if I’m pro-pigeon or anti-pigeon, because I’ll alienate half of our fans."
The II team is the testing ground for the young talent hoping to make it to MLS and now it's also the testing ground for just how popular the pigeon will prove to be among New York City soccer fans.
Hudson River Blue Staff
