Sligo's team colours are black and white. Sligo's jerseys have alternated between black and white over the years. In the 1990s, Sligo opted for predominantly white shirts with black shorts with exceptions in 1995 and 1996 when they wore an all-black strip. In 2001, Sligo was fined by the GAA for not wearing their registered county colours and after a win over Kildare decided to make the all-black kit their first choice. Sligo's crest features Benbulbin in the background, one of the iconic landmarks of County Sligo.
Kit evolution
History
Due to its much smaller population than both County Galway and County Mayo, the two dominant forces in the province of Connacht, and competition from professional League of Ireland soccer team Sligo Rovers in the county's capital town. The Sligo county football team have never been able to break free of the shackles inherent in the provincial championship format. They have won only three Connacht championships, with about 50 years between each win. These championships came in 1928, 1975 and 2007. Sligo have never appeared in an All-Ireland final. The 1922 Championship is the closest they have come, defeating Roscommon, Mayo and Galway to win the Connacht title, and beating Tipperary in the subsequent All-Ireland semi-final that followed. However an objection from Galway on what is described as "a flimsy technicality" led to the Connacht decider being brought to a replay, which Sligo went on to lose. Sligo met the same fate in the inaugural National Football League campaign of 1926, beating Laois to reach the final, only for Laois to object on the grounds of a Sligo player's name being misspelled; Sligo lost the replay. This gives Sligo the unique position of having qualified for an All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final and a National Football League Final, without ever having contested either. In 1954, Sligo reached the Connacht final against Galway, only for an equalising goal in the final minute to be disallowed. In 1962, Sligo reached the Connacht final against Roscommon, and led for much of the match only to be blighted by a sudden string of injuries, miss a 50 while two points ahead in the final minute, and then gift soon-to-be All-Ireland finalists Roscommon a goal in what is considered "one of the great football tragedies in Connacht". In 1965, Sligo reached the Connacht final against Galway and gained a seven-point lead, only for one of their players to be "mysteriously sent to the full-forward spot", causing "the entire team momentum" and the match. Since the 2001 introduction to the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship of a qualifier system for teams eliminated from their provincial championship, Sligo, despite historically having a poor record, has enjoyed some modest, though noteworthy, success. The new format together with a prolonged period of competing in Division 1 of the National Football League helped bring about an upward turn in the county's fortunes. In 2002, having narrowly lost the Connacht Senior Football Final to Galway, the defending All-Ireland champions, Sligo went on to defeat Tyrone in Croke Park, turning over a seven-point deficit in the process. A similar comeback against the eventual All-Ireland champions Armaghtwo weeks later led to a replay, but Sligo's run was halted when they had claims for a penalty in injury time of the second game turned down. On 8 July 2007, Sligo claimed their first Connacht title since 1975 with a one-point victory over Galway. The following year they were trashed by Mayo and ended up in the Tommy Murphy Cup, after a league campaign that had seen them relegated to Division 4. Star player Eamonn O'Hara said he was embarrassed by the team's rapid decline back into mediocrity. On 27 June 2010, Sligo hosted Galway and led 1–8 to 0–2 at halftime but were shocked by an undeserved draw ending 1–10 each. The replay saw Sligo defeat the Tribesmen on the scoreline 1–14 to 0–16 to advance to the Connacht Senior Football Final. Once there, after all their hard work and continued misfortune, Roscommon defeated them by 0–14 to 0–13. Sligo football descended to a new depth on 26 May 2013 when they were dumped out of the Connacht Championship by London in their first game. The scoreline was 1-12 to 0-14. This was London's first victory in the Connacht Championship since 1977. Lorcan Mulvey scored the vital London goal. The county Vocational Schools team reached two All-Ireland finals in 1962 and 1963, losing both to Dublin City. Four Sligo players have won All-Stars: Mickey Kearins of St Pat's, Barnes Murphy of St Mary's, Eamonn O'Hara of Tourlestrane, and Charlie Harrison of St John's.
