MELBOURNE City maintains it is not about to completely ditch its red and white Melbourne Heart roots.

But a long-anticipated switch to an all “City Blue” kit — akin to that worn by parent club Manchester City — appears inevitable for season 2017-18.

For the upcoming season City fans can expect their team to appear in a mostly similar kit worn in the past two campaigns, before the “brand and primary colour refresh” is implemented next year.

The change will come ahead of a 2017-18 season in which the A-League as a whole will undergo a major revamp, with logo and other sweeping changes to the look and feel of the competition expected.

City has long campaigned for the ability to wear blue, but initial attempts to make the switch when it transitioned from the Heart moniker in 2014 were scuppered by complaints from Sydney FC — which also wears the colour.

media_camera Sergio Aguero in Manchester City’s home kit.

But Football Federation Australia chief David Gallop said the decision to finally approve the push at a board meeting last week was a “common sense” approach.

“Obviously (Sydney’s) concerns were taken on board, but we felt the competition had evolved to a point where there are a number of uses of light blue in the competition apart from Sydney FC,” Gallop said.

“And the global identity of Manchester City perhaps wasn’t being fully utilised in a situation where their strip was a hybrid of white and city blue.

“We just felt that it’s a smart move for the A-League to embrace that global identity and allow them to play in their home strip in city blue.

“A lot of their training gear, their socks — even their net — so many things were that colour anyway, so it seemed right in a common sense way to allow things to evolve to the point where they can now play in their home strip.”

media_camera Harry Kewell wearing the old Heart kit.

City, when advertising recently for a new membership and ticketing sales manager, indicated it is targeting a 45 per cent membership growth this season, which would take it to 14,500.

The retention of red and white has long been a bone of contention among Heart diehards, but it would be hoped that the club’s apparent willingness to maintain that nod to its history will keep those fans onside.

Gallop said the distinction made between Sydney’s “Sky Blue” and Melbourne’s “City blue” was about terminology rather than literal colour.

“Manchester City have made it clear that Sky Blue is not an expression they’re interested in, city blue is,” he said.

“No one’s saying it’s going to be completely easy, but it seems right to have got to this point.”