Reach PLC and Record Sport is proud to be supporting homeless charity Shelter's #NoHomeKit campaign again this Christmas.
During the festive period #NoHomeKit will encourage football fans to ditch their home strips to raise awareness of the UK's housing emergency. In the space of 90 minutes, 25 households become homeless in England.
That means between the first and last whistle of any football match, 25 households will no longer have a safe or secure place to call home. Many more are at risk of becoming homeless with the cost of living crisis stretching family budgets to breaking point this winter. Shelter’s #NoHomeKit is football’s way of combating this growing emergency, with the charity encouraging teams and fans to proudly show off their away and third kits and donate to the cause. This is where we come in.
We are proud to be able to lend the support of our national titles the Mirror, Star and Express and all of our regional titles, including Birmingham Live, the Manchester Evening News and Liverpool Echo and to get behind this vital cause. The sense of identity, belonging and community that football fans feel at matches and in their homes is not something that everybody is fortunate enough to experience.
For many, this basic human right has either been lost or is under threat, and it’s time that changed. So, make sure you don an away shirt or third shirt during your club's festive fixtures and, if you’re asked why you’re not wearing your usual outfit, don’t be afraid to explain why.
Osama Bhutta, Director of Campaigns at Shelter, said: “Last year it was fantastic to see fans and teams across the country come together to fight the housing emergency. Our frontline services are braced for an incredibly tough winter as the cost of living crisis bites, so it’s brilliant that so many teams, fans and celebrities are stepping up and supporting #NoHomeKit this Christmas.”
Last year, 261 clubs across England and Wales supported Shelter’s #NoHomeKit - a figure that is set to be eclipsed as the campaign returns. This season, #NoHomeKit welcomes clubs from the Women’s Super League (WSL), the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) and the Scottish Women’s Premier League (SWPL), to add to support from within the Premier League, the EFL and non-league.
Record Sport are backing Scottish football clubs across the men's and women's game who will don their away colours next month as the Scottish Professional Football League and Scottish Women's Premier League unite to help combat homelessness. All SPFL clubs will wear away or third kits for their fixtures on December 23-24, even if they are playing at home.
The SWPL will do likewise on December 4. Some English clubs, including Tottenham and Brighton, have also committed to supporting the campaign. SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster said: "We are delighted to support Shelter Scotland's £NoHomeKit this season and are committed to helping this worsening problem in Scotland.
"The details of the growing housing crisis in this country are staggering and we are proud that we are able to help in some way. I can't wait to see our clubs leave their home shirts at home for this historic round of fixtures."
For the first time this year, the SPFL and SWPL is supporting the campaign, while Tottenham Hotspur in the WSL are also making their #NoHomeKit debut. Clubs in the EFL, including Watford, Coventry City and Derby County, are also back having supported so successfully last season, as are clubs throughout the non-league pyramid. The women’s game kicks off #NoHomeKit this year with fixtures on December 4 and December 11, with the men following over the festive period from December 23.
Tottenham men’s side, as well as Brighton and Hove Albion, are also officially supporting the campaign off the pitch, while brands across the game, including Classic Football Shirts and Mitre, are working alongside Shelter. Also throwing his support behind #NoHomeKit this year is pop superstar and football fan Tom Grennan, leading a stellar cast of celebrities who will be donning their away and third shirts in the coming weeks and encouraging donations to Shelter.
Tom said: “I’m passionate about this cause – it’s one of the most worrying things happening in our country, particularly with the cost of living crisis putting the squeeze on families up and down the UK. Football’s the perfect way to highlight the problem and I can’t wait to dig out some of my favourite vintage away shirts to show my support. I want to get everyone doing the same – get your kits on and donate to Shelter!”
Whether you’re watching at the ground or from your sofa, you can join the movement fighting to defend the right to a safe, secure and affordable home for everyone. Get involved by swapping your home colours for an away or third kit and text HOME to 70800 to donate £5 or visit https://nohomekit.shelter.org.uk/ to donate.
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