Manchester United thinking about permanent one-year kit cycle

the English FA launched a thing called the Task Force a few years back. It included David Mellor (an MP) and (I believe) ex-Chelsea player Paul Elliott. They 'ruled' that kits would have a two season cycle, on the basis that annual changes is simply profiteering on the clubs' part.

So, question to the FA... what happened?

Those of you that say annual kit changes are acceptable are missing the point. They're not. It is yet more blatant profiteering from the clubs. Perhaps some of you should try going to games rather than just watching pretty pictures of shirts on the internet.

You'd be hard pushed to find someone worse that Boro for new home kits every season though

I think the best cicle is 2 seasons Home Kit, One Season the Away kit, and every year relegate the previusly second kit to third... is the best way, a new shirt every season is not much effort and you have a new nice shirt, the sponsor have more money and everybody happy !!

But the joke is...what if your sponsor make a crappy kit ...you have to suport that 2 whole seasons ?? It's not fair...

[quote name="Gervillian Swike"]The one-year cycle can backfire...it's common practice in the lower divisions, and if your team brings out a home shirt you don't like, you simply wait for the next one. [/quote]

I agree. As a pompey fan, i've noticed many more fans than usual wearing the past 2 seasons kits. It makes you feel less unfasionable when the kit changes after 1 year. I niw only buy a shirt if i really like it, rather than just getting it because it's the latest and will last 2 years...

Clubs could easily bring out a new kit every season, so long as they have alternating cycles, and still retain two-year cycles with each kit.

Giving a kit a longer shelf life allows the kit more time to gain classic status.

Kits that I deem as classic from the last 15 years, off the top of my head:

Newcastle 95-97, Man United 98-00, Chelsea 95-97

[quote name="Jorge Rafael"]In American "Football" (throwball?, rugby light?)
clubs forget many people cannot afford constantly buying expensive shirts.[/quote]

Sorry, but as long as people keep buying replicas, clubs and producers have a point in issuing new kits every year. The matter is one of customers' responsibility. If someone cannot afford something as frivolous as a football jersey, they should simply not buy it.

In American "Football" (throwball?, rugby light?) in the NFL, teams must have the same uniform for at least FIVE years.

This whole thing about changing kits every year (in the future a kit every match!) and having 27 alternate uniforms is just an attempt at revenues, but clubs forget many people cannot afford constantly buying expensive shirts. At some point the trend will have to cool down...

I love to see MU use Barcelona formation..

2 new kits every year

...oh and gold

why has no one bin thinking about tottenham??
dudes, its 3 or 4 new kits a season with them. white-yellow-navey-sky blue-purple-gold-was there a pink one in there too?

also, is there any difference in aston villa's home kit this year and last?
i dnt blame newcastle for bringing out a third shrit this year, ha!

The problem is that the kit designers run out of ideas and the kits end up looking like crap. The other problem is that kids put pressure on their parents to get them their team's new kits. Obviously if they want a new kit (or three) once a year rather than once every two years it costs twice as much.

There is no real reason to have a new kit every year other than to make more money from the fans.

[quote name="Tim23"]
Personally I think the PL should insist that all club's kits last for a minimum of two years.[/quote]

I disagree, I think it would be a useless idea. Where is the problem if a team change kits every year?

Last 10 years:

Arsenal: 7 home kits, 14 change kits.

United: 7 home kits, 14 change kits.

Chelsea: 7 home kits, 16 change kits.

Liverpool: 8 home kits, 15 change kits.

Manchester City: 8 home kits, 16 change kits.

Newcastle: 7 home kits, 18 change kits.

Everton: 10 home kits, 20 change kits.

So United have changed their kits only as many times as Arsenal and fewer times than Chelsea, Liverpool, Newcastle and Everton (plus most other English teams). So why is it when people complain about teams bringing out new kits they always use United as the example?

Also, why would this guy at Arsenal know all these details about United's kit deal?

I agree with the poster above about it backfiring if they do change to one-year kits. People simply do not buy them all as they might if they last for 2 years. Also it means that the design suffers as they make s*u*i* changes to the kits just to make them look different to the previous ones. Personallym I think the PL should insist that all club's kits last for a minimum of two years.

1. How would the Arsenal GM know what Man Utd are planning to do?
2. This is the first year in about 6 that Arsenal haven't changed their home shirt so he is hardly in a position to talk.
3. As long as Nike keep producing abominations like the current kits, they can change it every week, I won't be buying one!

[quote]No, Bayern of course. And in Germany there are Leverkusen, Schalke or the HSV, too![/quote]

Yes, tonight these German teams came in my mind.

And Newcastle too!

[quote name="FDV"]Arsenal, Liverpool, Celtic and Man United are maybe the last 4 top teams who still have a 2 year kit cicle.
Does it work ?[/quote]

No, Bayern of course. And in Germany there are Leverkusen, Schalke or the HSV, too!

Like others have said, it's a common thing now. Every team will change shirts every year so singling out United does not make sense.

I wouldn't mind it, if i don't like it then i'll either just not buy it or get it for about a tenner on Ebay...

AS Roma uses to change all the kits year by year since 1994/95,
and every year I buy one them.
I prefer the one year cycle, coz I like to have more choice (1 out of 3 every year)

At Aberdeen we have a new home strip every year, but the away strip stays for two. We have a pattern

New home, new away
Next year
New home, new third
Next year
New sponser, new home and away, third disregarded
New home, new third

And so on.... I've noticed that a lot of folk have bought the away strip for this reason. And because it's not hideous like it usually is.

Oops...sorry about that word there...