sports – Page 3 – Football Focus

Declare Your Team Loyalty With A Football Jersey

Posted on March 17, 2013March 17, 2013 by ISAFA in Fans, Teams, Youth

It is a sport played by millions of people around the world. Boys and girls, men and women, from all walks of life and from nearly every nation on earth; football boasts a pool of players that is vaster and varied than possibly any other sport. Football’s appeal is understandable; not only is it a fun and exciting game to play, it is a sport that nearly anyone can play as the only thing you really need is a ball and your feet. However, that is not to say that there is not more to football than the ball, and fans and players of organized football know that the importance of football jersey cannot be understated.

A football jersey can convey the personality of your team. From the colors to your team crest or logo; your team’s football jersey is what makes the first impression on your opponents. If you are the coach or organizer of a youth team, or even a team of older and more experienced players, then selecting a jersey with the right look is an important part of your job. Online retailers and brick-and-mortar stores alike offer selections of jerseys as well as the ability to put names and numbers on the back, just like those seen on the jerseys of the professionals.

Like jerseys in other sports, fans of football also like to wear the colors and crest of their favorite teams and favorite players. The unmistakable colors and cuts of the most famous football jerseys are clearly identifiable, even from a distance, and wearing them allows fans to make a statement of loyalty to their beloved club. However, simply wearing the football jersey of your favorite team is only one way that soccer fans enjoy the thrill of wearing an official jersey. The worldwide appeal of football gives fans of the game hundreds of ways to add new jerseys to their collection.

What true football fan cannot appreciate the appeal of wearing the colors of great teams like FC Barcelona, Arsenal, PSG, AC Milan or Manchester United? And with combinations of home and away colors, as well as short and long sleeve versions, even the love of a single team can spawn a collection of several jerseys. Further, there is more to loving football than loving a single team. The various leagues around the world can make it easy to have several teams to root for, and each has their own distinctive collections of jerseys that fans will covet.

Rooting for specific teams is one way that people find themselves collecting jerseys, but rooting for favorite players might be even more popular. Wearing a football jersey with the Messi, Beckham, Zlatan, Ronaldo, are just a few names of football greats that adorn so many jerseys. And of course, let us not forget the ever popular Pele, who is still a popular choice decades after his playing career has ended.

Favorite teams and players aside, perhaps nothing catches the imagination of football fans like the World Cup. It is a time when team alliances are put aside and patriotism rules the day. With 198 nations fielding teams, and 32 of those teams making it to the last tournament, the World Cup is an event that drives football fans all over the world to buy a new football jersey that conveys their national pride.

Whether you are wearing the jersey of the team on which you play, or the jersey of the team you root for the most, using the Internet you can find a football jersey for the team, player, or colors that best define you.

Author: M. Jedediah

History of Football Uniform

Posted on January 24, 2013 by ISAFA in Teams

The origin of European Football is a hotly contested topic and the game took a professional shape in the United Kingdom in the late 18th century but a team uniform was not of the early innovations of the new sport.

A similar colored shirt or cap or scarf was worn to differentiate teams but around the 1870s, steps were taken to move soccer uniforms to what they are commonly known as today. Even then, matching shorts and socks were not considered part of the team uniform until the early 1900s. Long trousers or pantaloons were common features of early football games and the earliest version of shin guards made an appearance before shorts and socks were properly introduced.
However, as soon as the traditional top, shorts and socks uniform was established, its popularity spread like wildfire and football teams around the world were noted by their particular uniform.

As football spread around the world with travelers and former UK citizens introducing the game to new countries, a similarity in kits grew. This has led to the familiarity between strips of teams around the world. One example would be Juventus from Italy wearing the same stripes as Notts County, black and white stripes. As time has moved on, Juventus have become far more famous around the world but at the start of the 20th century, Notts County were one of the biggest clubs in England and the world of football at the time.

With two world wars spanning the next few decades, any developments in football fashion was mainly cosmetic with the few changes focusing on moving away from a proper shirt to the style of top that is more commonly associated with the modern era of the game.

As the advent of European Cup and the rise of television, football fans around the world became more aware of teams from other nations and the different styles of kit started to create new influences. One of the most important influences came from Real Madrid, European Cup winners for the first five years. Real Madrid wore a striking all white kit, most notably copied by Leeds United who changed their blue and yellow kit, and sported a smaller pair of shorts than the baggy efforts that were common in Britain. The 1960s not only brought about a revolution in the world of music, there was a fashion change in the world of football as button collars and long shorts went out of style and circle and V-neck collars with smaller shorts.

The 1970s saw even further fashionable changes but the next revolution in football uniforms came with the selling of replica shirts and then the addition of sponsors’ logos on the kit. Football clubs realized they could make money by selling copies of their strips to fans and as televised football grew more popular, companies were eager to have their name positioned on the team kit.

Although the 1980s were memorable as the era when football shorts were at their smallest and tightest, the most important changes in football uniforms since then have revolved around the technology. Sportswear technology has allowed kit manufacturers to make uniforms that are lighter, cooler and draw sweat away from players’ bodies. All of these innovations are designed to give an edge to the top players in a sport where the slightest advantage can make all the difference.

Fashion trends and styles come and go but the demand for football uniforms has never been higher than it is today. With new technologies making the kit even lighter and more suitable to the quickening pace of the game, football uniforms will continue to keep evolving and fascinating fans the world over.