Four in Four for England’s Shot Stoppers

Third kits have a knack for endurance, maybe not so in the last decade but until then, retaining strips for another season wasn’t considered taboo. Most of that time, it was just an away kit being relegated to the third for the next campaign but anyway, it prolongs the shelf life to make up for

England – 2004-06

Thanks to England Football Online for some of the finer details. Usually with national teams, I either document them for a kit cycle or from the qualification stages of a tournament until its finals if they reach that, or perhaps both as those criteria can overlap. That can be simple enough but if the kits’

Nike & Umbro United

Nike’s ‘Stand Up Speak Up‘ campaign was instigated by its athlete Thierry Henry, when he was the subject of racist remarks made by Spain coach Luis Aragonés. His comments were caught on film during a training session with his national team, aimed at Henry’s Arsenal teammate José Antonio Reyes as a way to motivate him.

Template Evolution – Nike 2002

The turn of the millennium marked the shift into kit design, with a higher emphasis placed on athlete performance. Perforated panelling became the mainstream to help regulate body temperature in key areas, tighter-fitting garments wicked the sweat away and the use of lighter materials was a literal load off. For the 2002 FIFA World Cup,

Pointless Change Kits #1 – England, 2005

Massive help from England Football Online for this piece. I’m starting another sporadic series that’s more cynical than my ‘Unpleasing Clashes‘ one, although my first ever post did technically cover this subject. You all better hold on to your waistbands or whatever. Launched with England’s new home kit, which had the red cross of St

Have You Got the Wrong Number?

Sometimes a kitman could be having a bad day; the washing machine broke or the courier got delayed, or perhaps everything went well and he just forgot to have his Weetabix. I’ll be looking at players being made to wear incorrect shirt numbers as a result, sometimes with very creative workarounds. Therefore I won’t be