Liverpool fans have slammed Nike.
The new kids for 2020/2021 have been released to mixed reviews, although the green and white piping is definitely gorgeous, and thousands have flocked to the official store.
These are not spenny times. COVID-19 has impacted budgets for nearly everyone in the land and even the Premier League is not immune to it – so why do they expect us to be?
Liverpool have got a lot of things right over the past five years, but they tend to fail on the commercial side of things. Their attempts to trademark the name Liverpool, their decision to furlough and the hated increase in ticket prices are all classic FSG bad decisions.
Supporters now have another gripe: the cost of the replica kits. If you want the brand new home one, with Champions League, Club World Cup and Premier League winning badges, it’s going to set you back an incredible £82.95.
For one top.
Ordinary fans are already being priced out of football in so many ways, and it seems like that is going to continue for the foreseeable.
What's the point in LFC getting 20% of all sales of a kit that nobody's going to buy because it's too expensive?
— matt (@ynwamatt) August 1, 2020
People with families are being priced out of the replica market and this pricing can’t be sustainable. Imagine having to buy three tops, two pairs of shorts and two pairs of socks. We’re looking at holiday money being spent here.
But they can price that high because Nike and the club know people are going to spend the money, even in tough times. There was a wait time to get onto the club shop over the weekend, while most sizes have been sold out.
At the time of writing, you could only buy the new home kit in small, medium and XXXL sizes.
This is all great for the club and their new partnership with Nike, but is it great for fans? And what does it say about an outfit that is supposed to be connected with the city in a way others aren’t?
A better solution would have been to donate a tiny portion of each fee received to local charities helping Merseysiders out who are struggling right now. Even a percent of a percent would have been a grand gesture, and could help soften the blow of those who are buying.