Last update May 22, 2026 by Javier Argudo
The Real Betis t-shirt It is one of the most recognizable Spanish football. The green and white stripes are part of the club's identity, of their stands and of that very particular way of understanding football that Beticismo has. But the origin of those colors is not as obvious as it seems..
Today it is almost impossible to imagine Betis without the green and white. But nevertheless, In its first years the Sevillian team was not born with that kit. Before becoming one of the most powerful symbols of Andalusian football, The club used other colors and lived a curious story that unites Seville, Glasgow, Celtic and a key figure: Manuel Ramos Asensio.
Betis' first uniform was not green and white
At the beginning of the club, when we still talk about Sevilla Balompié and the first steps of organized football in the city, The kit had nothing to do with the current image. The team came to dress blue t-shirt and white pants, a simple and common combination at a time when getting sports uniforms was not as easy as today.
That first clothing is part of Betic prehistory. In fact, The club itself has on some occasions recovered the blue as a nod to its origins. But the shirt that ended up entering the collective memory was another: the one with green and white stripes.
Manuel Ramos Asensio and the link with Celtic
The most accepted explanation of the verdiblanco origin has its own name. Manuel Ramos Asensio, one of the founders and first players of the club, He studied during his youth in Scotland. There he got to know the British football environment up close and, especially, al Celtic de Glasgow, a club that at that time already had a strong identity associated with green and white.
According to the story remembered by Real Betis himself, Ramos Asensio was the one who brought from Glasgow the green-and-white fabrics with which the team's first shirts were made. The connection was not a simple aesthetic inspiration: It was a direct relationship with Scottish football at the beginning of the 20th century, when British football continued to set style and customs in much of Europe.
The change occurred around 1910, when the team started using those colors. The green and white shirt ended up becoming the hallmark of the club..
Does it have to do with the flag of Andalusia?
One of the most common confusions is to think that Betis wears green and white for the flag of Andalusia.. The association is logical: the club is from Seville, deeply Andalusian and its colors match those of the community. But the origin of the shirt does not come directly from there.
The history of the Betic shirt is more related to the arrival of those fabrics from Glasgow and the influence of Manuel Ramos Asensio. Over time, The coincidence with the Andalusian colors further reinforced the symbolism of the uniform. The green and white ended up working on two levels: as a football heritage arrived from Scotland and as a color emotionally linked to Andalusia.
From an imported t-shirt to a symbol of Beticismo
The interesting thing about this story is how a practical and almost artisanal decision ended up creating a centuries-old identity.. In modern football, The shirts change every season and are designed with commercial criteria. In the first years of Betis, instead, colors could depend on travel, personal contacts, fabrics available and friendships built far from home.
That origin makes the Betis shirt have a special story. It's not just a pretty or recognizable kit: It's a piece of history. He talks about the years when Spanish football was still taking shape, of the British influence in sport and how a club could define its personality based on a decision made by one of its pioneers.
The green and white stripes and the style of Betis
The Real Betis shirt has changed a lot over the decades. Has had wider stripes, narrower, classic collars, modern designs, different shades of green and alternative versions. But the green and white striped pattern has remained the great common thread..
Some of the greatest names in Betic history passed through that shirt.: Esnaola, Gordillo, Rogelio, Cardeñosa, Alfonso, Finidi George, Rubén Castro or Joaquín. Each generation has its own green and white shirt in memory, but they all refer to the same origin.
There are also curious anecdotes about Betic clothing.. In Retro Football we already have the day Real Betis wore white for four minutes and that other story in which a president refused to dress Betis in white. They are episodes that demonstrate the extent to which colors matter in football..
Betis, Celtic and a connection that lives on
The symbolic relationship between Betis and Celtic has been remembered many times, especially when both clubs have crossed paths in European competition. They are not identical teams nor do they share a common institutional history, but there is an evident sentimental connection due to the origin of the green and white colors.
Celtic was a reference for Manuel Ramos Asensio, and that reference ended up arriving in Seville in the form of a t-shirt. More than a century later, Betis continues to carry that heritage on its chest every time it takes the field.
Frequently asked questions about the Betis green and white shirt
Why does Betis wear green and white?
Betis wears green and white due to the influence of Manuel Ramos Asensio, who knew Scottish football and brought fabrics linked to the Celtic colors from Glasgow. The club's first green and white shirts were made with them..
Does the Betis shirt come from Celtic?
Yes, The most widespread historical explanation connects the green and white Betis shirt with Glasgow Celtic and with Manuel Ramos Asensio's trip to Scotland. That inspiration was key for the club to adopt green and white.
What were the first colors of Betis?
Before wearing green and white, The team wore a blue shirt and white pants.. Those colors belong to the first years of the club, before the green and white shirt was consolidated as a Betic symbol.
Does Betis wear green and white for Andalusia??
Not directly. Although the colors coincide with the Andalusian flag and today that association is very strong, The origin of the shirt is mainly linked to Manuel Ramos Asensio, Glasgow and Celtic.
Sources and historical context
To reconstruct this history it is advisable to go to Real Betis' own historical archive, which has recalled on several occasions the figure of Manuel Ramos Asensio and the arrival of green and white fabrics from Glasgow. LaLiga has also explained the origin of the colors of Betis and Seville within the context of the Sevillian rivalry and the first years of football in the city.
More than a hundred years later, The green and white shirt continues to be much more than a kit. It's a sentimental flag, a Scottish heritage adapted to Seville and one of the great visual icons of the vintage football in Spain.
