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Everton will reportedly switch to Castore as their kit manufacturer from next season, despite Aston Villa’s complaints over their wet-look shirts.
According to The Telegraph, the Toffees have opened talks with the British kit supplier to replace Hummel when the Danish company’s deal runs out at the end of the season.
The move comes at a time when a number of clubs have ditched Castore or are in the process of doing so.
Castore came under fire last week after it was revealed that the Villa players had complained about their ‘wet-look’ shirts that see them become soaked with sweat within minutes.
Castore is set to replace Hummel as Everton’s kit supplier from next season
There is a belief that the shirts may be impacting the performance of Unai Emery’s side as they become heavy with sweat quickly, and concerns have been growing over the women’s team usage of the kit ahead of their WSL campaign opener on Sunday.
Mail Sport reported on Thursday that Wolves are believed to have had the same concerns about their kit during the 2022-23 campaign, but that these complaints did not become public.
Villa have been discussing a top-priority short-term replacement shirt with their kit supplier and are keen to apply pressure on the manufacturer, although the issue could take weeks to solve.
A spokesperson for Castore said in a statement on Thursday that the company acknowledged that time was of the essence to find a solution to the problems faced by both the men’s and women’s teams.
‘There has been some media speculation about a potential issue with the football kit supplied by Castore to Aston Villa Football Club,’ the statement read.
‘We are working closely in collaboration with the club to address this issue as quickly as possible to meet the standards we expect. We would like to thank the club for their patience and support to date.
‘As a proud new British brand, we always hold ourselves to the highest of standards and strive to do everything we can to constantly improve the performance of our products. This means addressing any customer concerns with promptness and humility.’
Villa raised concerns about their kit becoming too heavy due to being drenched in sweat
The issue affected Villa’s women team too, with players reportedly ‘dreading’ wearing the kits ahead of their WSL season opener against Manchester United on Sunday
Newcastle, meanwhile, have defended the quality of Castore products, despite receiving hundreds of complaints from supporters and ditching the kit supplier for Adidas.
The £5million-per-year Castore deal was agreed by former owner Mike Ashley in 2021 and was due to run until 2026.
However, Newcastle’s Saudi-led owners negotiated a severance package earlier this year, with Adidas replacing Castore from next summer. That deal will be worth £40m per season.
But Newcastle, in light of criticism of Castore this week, said in a statement: ‘The club has found the quality of Castore products to be extremely high.
Newcastle have triggered an early exit clause and will switch manufacturer from next season
‘We are proud to be wearing Castore’s well-designed, innovative training and match kits and are appreciative of Castore’s support and contribution to the club’s trajectory over the last three seasons.’
Serie A side Genoa switched to Kappa this summer, one season into their multi-year deal with Castore after reportedly receiving a late delivery of kits and winter jackets last season.
The club are owned by 777 Partners, whose bid to complete a take over of Everton remains pending Premier League approval.
The same consortium also owns a minority stake in Sevilla, who signed a multi-year deal with Castore in the summer but have not reported any issues with their kits.
