Forthefansit’s: thesmellofthestands, theechoofchants, thecoloursofthescarves.
Footballsellsfeeling beforeitsellsfabric.
Ashirtisaproduct beforeit’sasymbol. 01//THEPROMISE
Fortheclubsits: theprofits theprofits andmoreprofits
04//THESUSTAINABILITYCOST
Afootballshirtismarketedastimelessloyalty. Butit'ssoldthroughshortcycles.Theissueis biggerthanoneshirt.
Morekitreleases ⟶ moreproduction ⟶ more materials ⟶ morepackaging ⟶ more transport ⟶ morewaste ⟶ moremoremore.
HUMMEL(Denmark)runsa circularrecyclingprogramme,usesfluoridefreefinishing,andproduce 'EqualityJersey’s'with wsevenclubsinpartnership ithAmnestyInternational.
BrentfordFCbecamethefirst PremierLeagueclubtocommittoa TWO-YEARhomekitcycle(2023-25, withUmbro).Shirtsaremadefrom 100%recycledpolyester.Their rebootcollectionupcyclesoldkit materialintonewgarments.
Sustainabilityisaboutquestioningwhyfans arepushedtokeepbuyinginthefirstplace.
05//WHOPAYS?
Someonemakestheshirt. Someonemarketsthe dream.Someonetakes mostoftheprofit. Behindthebadgeare widerquestionsoflabour, transparencyandpower.
Thefootballshirtissoldascommunity. Yet,pershirt,£0.60goestotheworker and £24.30goestothebrand.
Theinequalitiesdon't endinthefactory.High pricesalsoshapethose whocanfullytakepart infanculture.Thisisa socialjusticeissue.
Howcanagamethatspeaksthe languageofinclusivitycanstill producethisamountofexclusion?
support. challenge. change.
-Buysecond-handshirts,ask#WhoMadeMyShirt beforeyoubuyandskipthepre-orderhype.
FANSCAN GOVERNINGBODIESMUST
-Two-seasonminimumkitcycles,publishfactories andauditedwages,runresaleandrepairschemes.
-Capnationalreplicaprices,mandatekit-cyclelimits acrossleagues,requireindustrytransparencymetrics. Thepeoplealreadydoingthis... who made yours?.
JOINTHEMOVEMENT
Thiszineisopinionated-butthefacts aren’tmine.Theyarepulledfrom research,reportsandcampaigns.
FURTHERREADING|CITED&RECOMMENDED
Books&Reports: BASIC&CCC(2016)-FoulPlay:Sponsorsleaveworkersonthe sidelines
FashionRevolution(2025)-FashionTransparencyIndex
Numerato(2018)-Footballfans,Activism&Social change
Kopplin(2023)-Sportsfashion&sustainability:aperfectmatch? WRAPUK(2024)-Textilesmarketsituationreport
Journalism&Media: BBCSport-Englandkitpricingcoverage(March2024)
TheGuardian-DavidConn’sFootballfinancecolumn
TheAthletic-Footballbusinessreporting WhenSaturdayComes-Fan-runMagazine(since1986) BusinessofSportpodcast-Sponsorship,sportswearetc