History of Football Shirts

During the Victorian period, and sometime in 1863 football emerged as a popular sport and so that is when the Football Association (FA) was formed.

There was no specialized clothing at that time and players did not have a uniform or specific shirt they wore during the game. For some time since white was the cheapest and most widely available color that is what many players wore.

Later on football players started to select and wear their own favorite colored caps and scarves so as to distinguish themselves from the opposing team.

In the 1870's kit clothing first started to appear, and in most cases the colors of the kits were related to the organization or school that was affiliated to the team.

In the first Football Association Cup Final in 1972, the two finalists played in clothing that had a mixture of colors. The Wanderers wore pink, cherry and black colors and the Royal Engineers wore navy and dark red. During this time the spectators and the fans would bring along a scarf with the team color to show their support.

Many teams later started to use the term "shirt," and it was in 1883 that the team shirts had vertical and striped patterns. These shirts were made from 100% heavy cotton that allowed tugging during the game. It was however in the mid twentieth century when lightweight shirts were introduced.

In the latter half of the 20th Century teams started selling shirts to fans especially since it brought an income to the team and was highly beneficial. Today, replica shirts are sold to fans that are proud to wear the colors and attire of their favorite team and players.

Today as far as sports are concerned, many people buy products to support the player or team of their choice, portraying this person to be a fan of that player or team. Football fanatics buy the shirt of their favorite team so as to show their support to everyone, especially the rival team fans.

Polyester and nylon is the fabric used nowadays to make the football shirts, probably since these fabrics are both lightweight and inexpensive, and easy to wash and wear.

An authentic football shirt must feel soft and silky and have a special shine to it. Observe the stitching, the color and the logo before purchasing a football shirt for your collection, and make sure the name of your favorite player is spelled accurately.

Football shirts that are signed are rare and limited, and if you do find one and want to purchase this signed shirt-collection item, make sure it is presented in an appropriate frame along with a Certificate of Authenticity.