Genesis of Football Shirt
Author: Soophott Lert

The modern day football shirt traces its origin to
Victorian era in English history. Prior to 1863, there was
no regulation for player's uniform in football. The two
rival teams were distinguished from each other by color of
the caps and the scarves, worn around the neck. The first
football uniform regulation was introduced in 1870.
Initially the player, who could afford to wear the shirt
more often, was able to play for the team. The first jersey
was manufactured in 1879 by Bukta and later in 1883; the
term football shirt was coined.

During this period the shirt was made of hard cotton fiber,
to withstand shirt tugging during the match. However
gradual changes in the rules led to introduction of light
weight shirts. The shirts in team colors were initially
restricted to players only. But from middle of twentieth
century due to new concepts in mass production and steadily
increasing demand of the fans; replicas of team shirts were
manufactured on mass scale.

The modern version is short sleeved for summer and spring
use, and long sleeved for winter. The material used for
manufacture of shirt is polyester and nylon, because of
their light weight and the comfort they provide to the
wearer. Nowadays the shirts are button-less and even
without collars.

In 1939, the football league management introduced numbers
on the players' shirt. The goalkeeper got number 1 because
his position was fixed at the goal post, unlike the other
players whose position changed throughout the match. In
1965 substitutes were given 12 and 14 numbers, while the
goalie got number 13.

In 1954, FIFA introduced squad numbering system which made
it mandatory for players of the national teams to wear the
same number throughout the tournament. On April18th 1993,
in the League cup the name and the number of each player
were printed on the back of the shirt. The 1994 world cup
for first time in its history saw, both the name and number
printed on the back side of the players.

The football shirt worm by the goal keeper is different
from that of his team members. Initially in 1970's the
color of the goalie shirt was restricted to green, red,
blue or white. The goalie shirt looked like long sleeved
vest and the other type looked like, a v-necked polo
sweater. It was modified to lighter version and looked like
athletic shirt; like the one worn today by goalkeepers.

From the early 19th century heavy cotton uppers, to modern
day trendy designer shirt, with huge demand among the fans,
the football shirt have come a long way indeed. The
replicas of shirts of national or club teams are widely
manufactured and easily available for the fans. They wear
the replicas of the football shirt to show their love and
support for their team. This increase in sales of shirts
has increased the revenues of the clubs. Further the
official sponsor of the team has their logo of the brand
affixed on the shirt. This has facilitated advertisement of
corporate brand in front of the global audience that the
game of football attracts.


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