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Football

22nd Mar 2024

FA break silence on England shirt uproar

Callum Boyle

England kit

The FA have responded

Nike and the Football Association have said that there are no plans to recall England’s Euro 2024 kit after fans complained about one detail.

England unveiled their new shirt earlier this week and after initial backlash over the price of the kit, fans have also lost their minds about what’s on the back.

Instead of the usual traditional red cross, Nike replaced it with a “playful update” of navy, light blue and purple colours.

It’s led to people labelling the kit as “woke” and even Keir Starmer chimed in, saying: “The flag is used by everybody, it is a unifier, it doesn’t need to be changed.”

Prime minister Rishi Sunk also said “not to mess” with the flag.

However Nike have said that they won’t alter or recall the kit, which as “flown off the shelves” in it’s first week of sales.

A spokesperson said: “The England 2024 Home kit disrupts history with a modern take on a classic. The trim on the cuffs takes its cues from the training gear worn by England’s 1966 heroes, with a gradient of blues and reds topped with purple. The same colours also feature an interpretation of the flag of St. George on the back of the collar.

The FA have also stood by Nike and have given the US manufacturers their full backing and have released their own statement saying that it was “not the first time” the colour of the St. George flag had changed and the latest design was in fact a tribute to the 1966 World Cup winning kit.

An FA spokesperson said: “The new England 2024 home kit has a number of design elements which were meant as a tribute to the 1966 World Cup winning team.

“The coloured trim on the cuffs is inspired by the training gear worn by England’s 1966 heroes, and the same colours also feature on the design on the back of the collar. It is not the first time that different coloured St George’s cross-inspired designs have been used on England shirts.
“We are very proud of the red and white St George’s cross – the England flag. We understand what it means to our fans, and how it unites and inspires, and it will be displayed prominently at Wembley tomorrow – as it always is – when England play Brazil.”

Industry experts have also said that even if they were to make a new kit, it would take around six-nine months to complete the designs.

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