Dropping more than £100 on a football jersey usually means you’re expecting top-notch quality, not an unwelcome throwback to 1980s style.
However, if you’re eyeing a new Nike jersey for the World Cup this summer, be warned: you might end up looking more like a space explorer from Artemis II than a football legend.
Back in March, Nike unveiled its latest lineup of kits for the upcoming tournament hosted by the USA, Canada, and Mexico. Teams like England, France, and some hosts debuted what initially appeared to be an impressive array of shirts.
Yet, fans who have shelled out significant amounts on these jerseys—England’s home shirt can set you back up to £135 on the Three Lions’ site—have been vocal about a peculiar issue, prompting Nike to address the comical mishap.
The sportswear giant released a statement saying, “During the recent international break, a small issue was identified with our Nike national team kits, particularly noticeable at the shoulder seam.
Fans spotted a manufacturing error on England shirts modelled by Marc Guehi and Declan Rice
Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford are seen in the shirts suffering from ‘bulging’
“While performance remains unaffected, the visual appeal isn’t quite up to our standards.”
The shoulder bulge was most apparent during England’s disappointing 1-0 defeat by Japan last week, with Cole Palmer’s shirt riding bizarrely high at the seams.
It was also a clear problem on France captain Kylian Mbappe’s shirt when he was celebrating scoring against Brazil, and also Federico Valverde’s jersey in Uruguay’s draw with Thomas Tuchel’s side.
‘We are a global team of best-in-class designers, creators and dreamers who spend every day thinking about how to innovate, challenge ourselves, and take risks that push the beautiful game,’ Nike told the Guardian.
‘We always hold ourselves and our products to the highest standards and this fell short. We’re working quickly to make this right for players and fans, because every kit should reflect the care, precision and pride that the game deserves.’
Canada are another national team that has a kit deal with Nike, and one fan didn’t hold back on Reddit after purchasing their home strip.
In a post showing the defect, the Canadian lambasted the ‘stupid design’ for which he paid 135 CAD.
‘It’s actually a complete joke,’ the post started. I was ready to finally splash the cash on a kit this summer, but these Nike kits don’t have a fit problem in that they might be too long or too short for some people… the way the shoulders are sewn together just makes them bunch like this, no matter what.
‘I think they might work if your shoulders are narrow. I have wider shoulders, and there’s just no way to not make this shoulder line not bunch.
The manufacturing error has been a problem on all of Nike kits, including France’s (worn by Kylian Mbappe)
Nike has acknowledged the shoulder bulging problem on the latest England shirt
‘This is a stupid, STUPID design. I was looking forward to getting this kit as well because the design looks nice, but the execution is a joke. $135 CAD for this.’
Many Reddit users agreed with the post, with one even admitting they will avoid spending money on the new kits for the first time in 20 years.
A comment on the post read: ‘Couldn’t agree more, I’ve bought the Dutch jersey every year since 2006 and this is the first time I won’t be buying. I went this past weekend to go try them on and was so disappointed.
‘Maybe when it goes on sale in four months but my god Nike has fallen off for a while now. What a shame, this might sound dumb but getting the new jersey is something I have always really looked forward too growing up, so seeing how poorly made these are makes me sad.’
It has been reported that Nike partially leaned on AI during the design process for their latest cohort of kits.
The sportswear giant is now said to be in conversation with the relevant federations and retailers regarding ‘next steps’ with the shirts.
