Kit design announced, twice
Huddersfield Town’s Twitter feed unveiled their real new kit today, following the widely different design that was revealed earlier this week.
The Terriers initially released images of the striking blue and white 2019/2020 Huddersfield Town football strip featuring a Miss Universe-esque sash. The logo of team sponsor, Paddy Power, was predominantly displayed in a large font. Commercial Director Sean Jarvis commented at the time that the sash kit was “eye-catching and innovative”.
Despite playing a pre-season friendly against Rochdale on Wednesday wearing the kit, it seems that the furor over the sportswear is simply a hoax.
The whole thing now appears to have been the start of a new campaign for the club.
Titled #SaveOurShirt, the actual kit shows a markedly changed design without the Paddy Power logo. The club says this will help “return the kit back to the fans.”
Football Association involved
The Terriers even had the Football Association fooled when they launched their ‘new’ kit earlier this week. It raised eyebrows not just for the style, but mainly as strict requirements ensure that teams can only display sponsor details in certain sizes and positions.
Despite the good intentions, it seems that the club neglected to inform the Football Association, who had intervened over the sash kit and sent a letter about appropriate sponsorship logo sizes.
FA regulations state that a playing kit is only permitted to have: “one single area not exceeding 250 square centimeters on the front of the shirt.”
Fans fall for it
Many fans are still clamoring for the sash style, asking if it will be made available after all.
The hoax kit was widely reported across social media and many sports news pages, all focusing on the negative aspect of such a prominent logo by a gambling firm. However, speculation that it was indeed a publicity stunt proved true.
With the season yet to kick off, Huddersfield Town have managed to send a message to the FA and fans over the conversation of logos on kits.
With 60% of clubs from the top two divisions in England last season sporting gambling logos, the area is often a way in for companies to spread their message in prime-time matches. However, gambling logos are not available on children’s replica shirts.
The new kit without the prominent logo will be on sale shortly.