The England Euro 2024 home kit will not change, despite the huge backlash it has received online.
Nike has decided to alter the colours of the St. George's Cross on the back of the new England home kit, which is set to be worn in Germany at Euro 2024. Featuring gradients of blues, reds and purples, the cross has received a "playful update", according to Nike, that "appears on the collar to unite and inspire".
Plenty have been left outraged at the idea the flag be altered, though, with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer even renouncing the design. Still, the backlash won't change anything - England will unquestionably still wear the kit this summer.
Do you remember the riots of 2010 when Joey Barton and fellow patriots took to the streets in faux outrage about the St George's cross in four different colours... pic.twitter.com/kdSGNRby9pMarch 21, 2024
Why the England Euro 2024 home kit won't change
It's all very simple why the England kit won't change, and it all comes down to one thing: logistics.
According to the Daily Mail, industry experts say new kits take six to nine months to create and distribute. With Euro 2024 less than three months away, it's simply impossible for Nike to release a new kit.
While a small number could be made for the players in time for the tournament, the Swoosh aren't going to be willing to forego millions of pounds - the shirt does cost £125 after all - just because of some faux outrage online.
Indeed, Nike has even highlights that the shirt has "flown off the shelves" since its release on Monday, so would that also mean recalling every single shirt before the tournament? Obviously not.
Additionally, this isn't the first time the St. George's Cross has been altered on an England shirt. The 2011 home kit, designed by Peter Saville, featured tiny little crosses across the shoulders of the shirt.
Those crosses featured four different colours: red, purple, green and blue, yet no one batted an eyelid. Indeed, kit manufacturers Umbro even justified the decision in no uncertain terms:
"Inspired by the increasingly diverse fabric of England, the design takes the traditional St. George’s cross and reinterprets it as a reoccurring motif in four different colours – the traditional red, blue and green which feature in England’s three lions crest, plus a blend of all three which comes out as a striking purple," Umbro said.
That same year, the Cross made up the whole goalkeeper shirt. Instead of coming in red, though, the Cross was three different shades of green, all interconnecting in the design of the jersey. Again, no issue.
Nor was there when fast-forwarding to 2018, when England wore two different pre-match shirts emblazoned with the St. George's flag across the entirety of the front of the top. Coming out to warm-up against United States in a November international, the England squad initially wore a shirt which had the Cross in a neon yellow colourscheme, while the next game against Croatia saw it turn pink.
You get the picture.
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