JD Sports’ CEO has revealed they have sold more England away kits than the home strip amid the flag controversy.
There was uproar from fans when they noticed the St George’s Flag on the collar of the home kit had changed colours.
Former players and even politicians expressed their discontent, with Nike saying the ‘playful update’ was made to ‘unite and inspire’ the country ahead of Euro 2024.
This appears to have impacted the strip’s sales, with sports-fashion retail giants JD Sports noticing more success with the away kit.
Speaking to The Sun, their CEO Regis Schultz commented on how this is a first for the company when it comes to England’s attire.
“It has only been two or three days of trading and so far it has been ok, but the one thing we are seeing is that the away shirt is selling better than the other one, when usually it would be the other way around.”
They are yet to sell out with the away kit, but Schultz explained: “It is early days. We have more shirts than normal, we had a bigger order so that might be why.”
The FA also released a statement, saying a ‘number of the design elements’ are a tribute to the 1966 World Cup winning team.
They also said it’s not the first time in which the St George’s Cross has featured different coloured designs on Three Lions kits.
England boss Gareth Southgate appeared to side with fans who didn’t like the alteration, although said it wasn’t high on his list of priorities.
Aside from the change to the flag’s colours, a large number of fans expressed their love for both the home and away designs on social media.
However another cause of outrage has come with the pricing, with adult shirts as much as £124.99 and kids’ set at £119.99.
England gave debuts to their new attire during their international friendlies to give fans a glimpse ahead of the summer at Euro 2024.
The home kit made an appearance in their 1-0 defeat to Brazil, with the Three Lions wearing the away kit in the 2-2 draw with Belgium.
Many shirts are still set to be sold in the coming months and worn both at home and away in Germany as England set their sights on Euros glory.