Next seasons kit choice?

[Simon's Church]

Maybe we've decided to go back to the good days of a kit lasting more than one season?

[Dirk Gently]

Do not and never will understand grown adults obsessing about football kits. Very odd behaviour.

Agreed - people putting themselves totally and utterly at the behest of the club's marketing department. I suspect it's subconsciously just another part of the "I'm a better fan than you because..." syndrome, but it's still very strange.

[tmesis]

Do not and never will understand grown adults obsessing about football kits. Very odd behaviour.

Agreed - people putting themselves totally and utterly at the behest of the club's marketing department. I suspect it's subconsciously just another part of the "I'm a better fan than you because..." syndrome, but it's still very strange.

I can't agree with that at all. I don't recall anybody even remotely hinting at the idea that wearing the latest shirt, or even any shirt, makes you a better fan.

It's simply that quite a lot of fans like to buy a shirt, and are more likely to buy one if it looks good. Others, even if they don't buy one, would like to see the team play in something decent.

You can throw in the continuing annual mystery of why Reading are always one of the last clubs in the country to release the new kit - a question which it never seems to have answered. People have put reasonable theories up, but given that someone at the club must get an annoying amount of emails about it every year, you'd think they'd have made some sort of explanation.

Even a provisional launch/sale date would be nice.

[Dirk Gently]

Do not and never will understand grown adults obsessing about football kits. Very odd behaviour.

Agreed - people putting themselves totally and utterly at the behest of the club's marketing department. I suspect it's subconsciously just another part of the "I'm a better fan than you because..." syndrome, but it's still very strange.

I can't agree with that at all. I don't recall anybody even remotely hinting at the idea that wearing the latest shirt, or even any shirt, makes you a better fan.

It's simply that quite a lot of fans like to buy a shirt, and are more likely to buy one if it looks good. Others, even if they don't buy one, would like to see the team play in something decent.

You can throw in the continuing annual mystery of why Reading are always one of the last clubs in the country to release the new kit - a question which it never seems to have answered. People have put reasonable theories up, but given that someone at the club must get an annoying amount of emails about it every year, you'd think they'd have made some sort of explanation.

Even a provisional launch/sale date would be nice.

Hence the use of the word "subconsciously". No-one says it out loud, but at least some of the people buying the latest shirts do so for other people to see that they've bought the latest shirts. If there's not some kind of one-upmanship from having the latest shirt, why do people obsess about having the latest one as soon as it comes out - i.e. before most other people?

Mind you, this does also work in reverse, where there's another kind of snobbery that comes from wearing shirts as old and different as possible.

[paultheroyal]

Not sure what is worse, those perceived to be impatient wanting a kit or those moaning about people who are interested in a kit.

Of course fans are going to want to know what the kit is like. I wont buy one, my son will, but its an event and one which will gain interest. I am sure through all walks of life, people comment on staff uniforms or other sporting merchandise etc.

Like i started this comment, those who moan about people moaning about kids are on a par.

[hughsies no.1]

No pleasing the kids on Twatter is there

Begging for Longy, now begging for a new shirt.

Patience is a virtue...

[SCIAG]

Hearing reports that our new kit will be perfectly transparent.

[PATRIQT]

Hearing reports that our new kit will be perfectly transparent.

Yes, in honour of our owner.

[Nameless]

Hearing reports that our new kit will be perfectly transparent.

I’m sure the opportunity to watch a group of well honed young men running round in see through clothes will appeal to a certain demographic....

[tmesis]

Agreed - people putting themselves totally and utterly at the behest of the club's marketing department. I suspect it's subconsciously just another part of the "I'm a better fan than you because..." syndrome, but it's still very strange.

I can't agree with that at all. I don't recall anybody even remotely hinting at the idea that wearing the latest shirt, or even any shirt, makes you a better fan.

It's simply that quite a lot of fans like to buy a shirt, and are more likely to buy one if it looks good. Others, even if they don't buy one, would like to see the team play in something decent.

You can throw in the continuing annual mystery of why Reading are always one of the last clubs in the country to release the new kit - a question which it never seems to have answered. People have put reasonable theories up, but given that someone at the club must get an annoying amount of emails about it every year, you'd think they'd have made some sort of explanation.

Even a provisional launch/sale date would be nice.

Hence the use of the word "subconsciously". No-one says it out loud, but at least some of the people buying the latest shirts do so for other people to see that they've bought the latest shirts. If there's not some kind of one-upmanship from having the latest shirt, why do people obsess about having the latest one as soon as it comes out - i.e. before most other people?

Mind you, this does also work in reverse, where there's another kind of snobbery that comes from wearing shirts as old and different as possible.

They don't.

If someone was obsessed with having it before other people then the actual date it came out wouldn't matter in the slightest, as all that would matter would be getting it on the day it comes out, before other people have bought it yet.

And no, I really don't think anybody thinks having the new shirt makes them better fans than those that don't have it yet. They'd just rather have the new shirt - a personal choice - and no more than that. It's probably more akin to a fashion victim, albeit in a sports leisurewear context.


The conspicuous wearing of older shirts was something that only really seemed to catch on when we got to the premier league, when some fans seemed to want to show everybody that they'd been going since 1994, or whenever. It did have the unintentional drawback of making it look like they'd not been going to Reading games since 1994, and the premier league enticed them back.

[RG30]

Jonathan Low on twitter; https://twitter.com/jonathanl50/status/1550543533114810369

For those asking about the new #readingfc kit, am told it will be released early next week. Last season’s kit will be worn tomorrow v Brighton. New kit on display for the first game of the season at Blackpool a week tomorrow. Third kit won’t be unveiled until later in the year

[RG30]

Suddenly, temporary kits have become all the rage in the EFL.

On Tuesday night, Sheffield United took to the field at Mansfield Town sporting an all-white number that will no doubt become a collectors’ item in years to come due to it being a one-off designed solely to be worn by Paul Heckingbottom’s players during pre-season.

Also sporting shirts and shorts that can perhaps be described as “stop-gap” were League One clubs Derby County and Shrewsbury Town.

Derby only exiting administration earlier this month partly explains why their 2022-23 kit is not yet ready for the players, while Shrewsbury wore an all-red number created specifically by Umbro for a friendly with Cardiff City to avoid a colour clash with a visiting side who had no alternative to wearing blue due to their new away kit not having yet been delivered by New Balance.

All four clubs — Sheffield United are not expected to reveal the design of either their new home or away kit until August 1, the day of their opening game at Watford — are facing a race against time to be ready for next weekend’s big kick-off in the EFL after becoming caught up in supply-chain issues that experts in the industry blame primarily on COVID-19.

“Why so many clubs are late at the moment is if your kit isn’t manufactured in China, at least a part of the fabric is coming from China — the trim, for example,” explains former Mitre managing director Carl Davies, who is currently CEO of Perry Ellis Europe.

“But China has been in lockdown. Football kits are made of polyester and a trim or badge usually made of a different fabric such as cotton. The biggest polyester manufacturing area is China. The second is Vietnam.

“That’s where the biggest production of football kits is. Vietnam was in lockdown for most of 2021 through to September, so no production was happening and there was a knock-on impact. Then China has been in lockdown until relatively recently, until the last four weeks. It’s the same for many brands.”

These factory closures in the Far East have had a huge knock-on effect for many football clubs. Not only are the delays likely to cost clubs a sizeable sum of money, with Leeds United, who sold around 300,000 shirts for the 2021-22 campaign, not expected to have their new replica shirts in the shops until late August.

But supporters, including some in the Premier League, have also been left in the dark as to what their teams will be wearing in the coming season. Fulham are yet to unveil their new kits, while Brentford only did so with their away shirt yesterday. Such has been the air of uncertainty that the official Premier League handbook, published this week, is missing several kit designs.

In the EFL, Middlesbrough fans will have to wait until next month to pick up the new away shirt, while Colchester United supporters were left similarly disappointed when their new home and away shirts were released at last weekend’s Open Day with only pre-orders possible.

Portsmouth are another club who have been affected by lockdowns overseas, with their home kit only going on sale yesterday. Likewise Shrewsbury, with supporters now able to pre-order but with collections not until August 8.

To those who love to show their devotion by wearing the new shirt on holiday or at pre-season friendlies, this has been a big frustration with clubs invariably bearing the brunt on social media.

The most pressing headache, however, concerns the late arrival of the kits to be worn by the players of Sheffield United, Derby et al.

When contacted by The Athletic about the possibility of a new kit not being ready in time for the opening weekend and asked whether there may be a penalty imposed, an EFL spokesperson insisted no club had raised any such concern about the first match of the season.

“Any specific issues will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis and will depend on the opposition, location (ie home or away) and what kits are available,” the spokesperson added.

Ryan Sparks, Bradford City’s chief executive, spent a few days recently at Macron’s headquarters in Bologna.

Nothing unusual in that. The Italian firm supply around 90 sports clubs across Europe and City joined their roster this summer after signing a six-year deal.

Both parties are happy with the agreement, not least because League Two City’s like-for-like sales for the new home shirt are up 36 per cent on the same period last year after shifting almost 2,400 in the opening 27 days. With Macron hoping to beat last season’s 15,000 shirt sales by an additional 5,000 in 2022-23, it has been a promising start.

That, though, was not why Sparks was in Italy. Instead, the supply problems that have left several rival clubs waiting anxiously for deliveries lay behind a trip he would normally have made once the new campaign was under way.

“I flew out to finalise our designs for the 2023-24 season,” says Sparks. “The plan is to then place the order before the end of the month and, that way, we hope to guarantee delivery in April or May.

“In the past, we’ve placed our order in November or December after working on ideas for a couple of months. But that was before COVID. It is still a big problem, with a number of factories having been closed during a crucial window for production.

“Shipping is also harder. I’m not sure if a number of companies have gone under but shipping is certainly taking longer than it did. Our kit comes from China so we felt it prudent to put the orders for next season in early. Supporters love getting the new shirt in summer. They don’t want to have to wait.”

Bradford are far from alone in changing their methods following this year’s hold-ups. Bristol Rovers chief executive, Tom Gorringe, revealed earlier this week that the newly-promoted League One club planned to start their own process earlier after suffering delays this time around.

Previously, Rovers had placed their order in October with a view to production starting in China around April and a scheduled arrival in the UK two months later. Davies, the CEO of Perry Ellis Europe, fully understands such thinking.

“It is a meticulous process,” he adds about the ordering and production of team kits. “But it’s really easy until a big incident like COVID comes along.

“There’s not many different kit factories around the world so you’re in a queuing system. Nike and Adidas have their exclusives but everyone else goes into the same factories. From August to January, the manufacturers of those factories are producing kits.

“Everyone in the industry knows the Holy Grail is to have your kit manufactured by the third week of January. By Chinese New Year, you get it on a boat. It’s generally then 12 weeks on a boat.

“So it’s on a boat by the end of January and you start to get to Europe around April. By the last day of the season, you can wear your new kit and put it on sale, and get sales for the summer holidays.”

Not all delays can be put down to COVID problems in China or Vietnam. A loose correlation can be found between the clubs who announce shirt sponsorship deals relatively late and supporters facing waits to snap up the new shirt.

Different manufacturers deal with this in different ways. Some produce the shirts with a blank front overseas and then add the logos on arrival in the UK. Others prefer the sponsors to be printed within the fabric, meaning the work has to be done at source.

Both can cause delays, especially the former, with the sponsor-free shirts arriving in the UK individually wrapped, ready to go on the shelf in-store. Each one, therefore, has to be taken out of the packaging, the logo added and then the shirt rewrapped. This can add two to three weeks to the process.

Other clubs can’t resist making last-minute changes. Then there are hold-ups caused by a club being subject to a takeover, as happened to Sheffield United early in 2022 when US businessman Henry Mauriss tabled a £115million ($138m) bid. Such a scenario can lead to pressing decisions having to be put on hold.

The Championship club, after eight years with Adidas, also moved supplier this summer as part of a wider agreement that will see Errea produce the kit for all five clubs who play under the United World umbrella, a stable that includes Belgian second-tier side Beerschot and Chateauroux in France.

United remain confident the new kit will arrive in time for the August 1 opener at Watford, with a good number of the players’ supply of shirts, shorts and socks for 2022-23 having now landed at Bramall Lane.

Derby supporters, meanwhile, will have to wait until the autumn to buy this season’s replica shirts after production was only given the green light following the club’s exit from administration earlier this month. A small consignment of kit for the players had previously been signed off by the administrator and should be at Pride Park for the big kick-off.

All EFL clubs must register their final kit choices with the League during the close season. This follows a spell working with the EFL and FA during the design process to ensure they meet all regulations, which include how only a club’s name, initials, nickname or a trademark registered design can appear on the shirt.

At least one EFL club fell foul of this FA stipulation recently. Bradford chief executive Sparks reveals: “We wanted to put a map of Bradford and the outlying area on the kit for the coming season but we were told it was inappropriate.

“This held things up slightly but wasn’t too big an issue, mainly because we had got our work done early.”

When delays occur that can be put down to supply chain issues, the manufacturing companies do try to do what they can. This can include speeding up the arrival of kit by using air freight rather than boats, something that eats into the bottom line due to increased costs. Some clubs, however, are experiencing inconsistent supply: one box of 50 shirts may arrive one day for sale to the fanbase and then another delivery of 150 items two days later, making the job of planning the rollout of new kits even more difficult.

Another option is to produce a smaller run at a different manufacturing centre, such as in Europe. Leeds, one of the clubs directly affected by production-line closures in Vietnam, are understood to have benefited from both methods as Adidas endeavoured to ensure the players had enough of the new home kit for this month’s tour of Australia.

Adidas had previously admitted “unprecedented challenges” lay behind delays in the delivery of the Yorkshire club’s replica kits and training gear. This did little to placate supporters, especially at a time when their Manchester United and Arsenal counterparts are experiencing no such problems with their respective club’s Adidas stock.

Merchandising income, even in a Premier League awash with TV cash, remains important. Leeds, for instance, banked £20million from this market in their last set of accounts for 2020-21.

Further down the pyramid, such revenue becomes even more vital. Carlisle United chief executive Nigel Clibbens estimates half the League Two club’s total retail revenue comes from shirt sales.

“It is vital for a club like ourselves,” he adds. “Especially at a time of year like now when there is no gate money coming in. Each year, the plan is to tie in the release of the kits with fixture release day in June.

“We changed shirt sponsor this year but the deal was signed off in January, even though we didn’t reveal the change until June out of respect to our previous front-of-shirt sponsor. That helped hugely in terms of getting this season’s kit here on time.

“Ours come from Europe so there is the added element of Brexit. Getting them through customs into the UK takes longer now. We also have to pay any duties up front, whereas before we could deal with that on a net basis. All this before we’ve even sold one shirt.”

Those extra costs make delivery timetables even more important, regardless of what level a club is at.

Davies, the former Mitre managing director, says: “The biggest problem is if you put it on sale in June, you stop selling in March, unless you make the play-offs or the Cup final. It’s a relatively short window. So, being late isn’t quite a disaster but it’s bad.”

Many clubs, and particularly those with big support bases, choose to stagger the release of their home and away kits, preferably across two monthly pay packets. That way supporters will rush out and buy the home shirt when first put on sale. Then, once the season is honing into view, there will be a temptation to snap up the away kit, too.

This time around that has just not been possible for some clubs and there will be financial consequences, according to Davies.

“The bigger issue is less with the really big clubs and even the smallest clubs because they order fewer shirts,” he adds. “It is clubs like (Crystal) Palace, Leeds, Southampton and (Aston) Villa who don’t get too many neutrals buying stuff, it’s just their fanbase.

“If you miss the key selling windows then fans won’t bother unless it’s on sale because you’re half way through the season. That’s the club’s money being lost, at roughly £25 a shirt.”

Adding to the headaches of those clubs still waiting for replica stock is the cost of living crisis and the World Cup being held in November and December. There is audible concern in some quarters that the latter may shorten further the selling season for this season’s club kits, meaning the current delays could not have come at a worse time.

Does this, though, mean we can expect to see clubs seeking compensation for losses caused by the delays?

“You’ve got a bit of that going on at the moment,” says Davies. “But everyone is being friendly with each other because everyone has been through COVID.

“If it happens next season there will be negotiations and compensation demanded. But, at the moment, everyone is playing friendly with each other.”

https://theathletic.com/3436798/2022/07/23/why-some-teams-wont-have-their-kits-in-time-for-the-new-season/?source=user_shared_article

[Hendo]

So, not just Reading then?

Who’d have thunk it?

Thanks for posting.

[Pepe the Horseman]

Hearing reports that our new kit will be perfectly transparent.

I’m sure the opportunity to watch a group of well honed young men running round in see through clothes will appeal to a certain demographic....

Hi x

[blythspartan]

I hope they keep last season’s kit as it’s my favourite. I saw a photo earlier in the week of when we signed Chris Gunter. That was an awful looking shirt with one thick blue hoop. I can’t even remember us playing in it.

[muirinho]

I hope they keep last season’s kit as it’s my favourite. I saw a photo earlier in the week of when we signed Chris Gunter. That was an awful looking shirt with one thick blue hoop. I can’t even remember us playing in it.

You've successfully blocked our disastrous 12/13 PL season from your head - well done !

[Royal Ginger]

Good lord the sleeves…

[Hound]

Certainly interesting…

[Jagermesiter1871]

I don't hate it. From what I can barely see.

[paultheroyal]

Fewer than half of English Football and Premier League clubs have both their new home and away kits available to buy online ahead of the season, as manufacturers face supply chain issues.

Only 44 out of 92 clubs currently have both their 2022-23 season kits on sale.

Premier League clubs including Crystal Palace and Leeds United are among those who have neither kit available.

Some have blamed the delays on disruption and factory shutdowns in Asia due to Covid.

It means some clubs won't have their new kit on sale before the season starts, which for the Championship is 29 July, for League One and League Two is 30 July and for the Premier League is 5 August.

Out of the 92 clubs in the top four leagues:

44 teams have both kits available for sale on their website
22 teams have only their home kit available
7 teams have only their away kit available
19 teams have neither kit available