The new England kit: Tailor Made for England
Journalist Chris Hunt interviews Charlie Allen for the Umbro blog. Read the whole Umbro blog
Chris: You’ve admitted that working on the new England shirt was a great thrill for you, but football fans are few and far between in the world of fashion, aren’t they?
Charlie: “Fashion and football don’t really go together as far as the people who work in fashion are concerned, so being a big fan of the beautiful game, I was always forced to hide it in the closet a bit. Fashion people tended to shun football because of the yob culture that they believed was associated with the game. But the sport is much more gentrified now and it has finally become acceptable to be a football fan.”
Chris: As a big fan of the game, are you a student of classic football kit design?
Charlie: “I’m a big Arsenal fan, I’ve got to say that, and when I got involved with the design of the England kit I was able to go back and look at many of the old England and Arsenal kits that I have in my collection – I have a lot of vintage shirts from the Sixties and Seventies, the ones that that the players used to wear – they were made from Aertex and all sorts of fabrics like that.”
Chris: What would be your favourite England kit from the past?
Charlie: “It would have to be the one they wore for Mexico ’70. The Seventies were really the purest and most inspirational time – teams were so well turned out then and everything was fitted. I think that must have been the last time when football kits were fitted. The Seventies period would really be my inspiration – and that’s when I started designing at college and finding out about design cut. In the Eighties it all started to be about big shapes and Dallas shoulders, but there was a sense of style about the Sixties and Seventies. I think that’s why we’ve gone back to square one with this new kit.”
Chris: As a man of style and taste, will we see you wearing the new England kit yourself?
Charlie: “I keep asking if I can I have one now, but Umbro say I have to wait for the launch. The whole project has been top secret and as I haven’t been allowed to talk about my involvement with the new shirt, keeping quiet has been the most difficult thing. I’d just love to tell people all about what I’ve been involved with, but I haven’t been able to. I can’t wait until it’s unveiled on March 28 so I can actually put it on myself.”
Chris: When you got involved with the first player fitting sessions, was there anything that surprised you?
Charlie: “One of the biggest surprises I’ve had since getting involved in this process is finding out that the players actually wear exactly the same shirt as the ones that the fans wear. I had always imagined that the England team must have had specially made shirts. It made sense to me that a player’s shirt should fit properly – after all, making sure that things fit is really what I’m about as a tailor.”
Chris: Is the fit of a sports garment really that important?
Charlie: “The fit is key. Many of today’s garments haven’t been designed to fit properly because each one has got to fit so many people – either small, medium or large. But after Umbro had settled on the concept of ‘Football Tailored’, it was decided that we should measure the players for their own kits. It all came as a bit of a shock to the players. When I started measuring them they said, ‘What are you doing? I’ve never been measured before for a shirt’. They were amazed when we explained that we had actually designed a shirt that was made to fit them.”
Chris: What was the most satisfying thing about the fitting sessions?
Charlie: “What I loved about it was that here were the best players from all those different teams around the country – they’re special anyway, but we’ve tried to create something to make them feel even more special. It’s very hard to explain what it means to have a bespoke garment. A lot of them haven’t even had suits made for them in the past as they’ve bought off the peg, so it made them feel special straight away.”
Chris: Is a fitting session really necessary?
Charlie: “Yes. Part of the process of making sure that everything fits is actually having measurements taken and a proper fitting session. To start with they didn’t understand why you have to have a fitting session. We had to explain – it’s so it fits you! Getting that message across was the first thing that we had to do and I think they all understand the importance of it now.”
Chris: How long did it take until the players really bought into the concept of a bespoke football kit?
Charlie: “I remember that Rio Ferdinand got into it straightaway. I used to make suits for his dad, who had actually modelled for me in one of my fashion shows many years ago, so he was right into it. And so were David James and Joe Cole too, while John Terry wanted to come and get some suits made. They loved being fussed over. Never before has a kit meant that much because usually it’s just another kit – they’re told to put it on and it should fit where it touches! But this time they’re getting a kit crafted to fit them.”
Journalist Chris Hunt interviews Charlie Allen for the Umbro blog. Read the whole Umbro blog
Chris: You’ve admitted that working on the new England shirt was a great thrill for you, but football fans are few and far between in the world of fashion, aren’t they?
Charlie: “Fashion and football don’t really go together as far as the people who work in fashion are concerned, so being a big fan of the beautiful game, I was always forced to hide it in the closet a bit. Fashion people tended to shun football because of the yob culture that they believed was associated with the game. But the sport is much more gentrified now and it has finally become acceptable to be a football fan.”
Chris: As a big fan of the game, are you a student of classic football kit design?
Charlie: “I’m a big Arsenal fan, I’ve got to say that, and when I got involved with the design of the England kit I was able to go back and look at many of the old England and Arsenal kits that I have in my collection – I have a lot of vintage shirts from the Sixties and Seventies, the ones that that the players used to wear – they were made from Aertex and all sorts of fabrics like that.”
Chris: What would be your favourite England kit from the past?
Charlie: “It would have to be the one they wore for Mexico ’70. The Seventies were really the purest and most inspirational time – teams were so well turned out then and everything was fitted. I think that must have been the last time when football kits were fitted. The Seventies period would really be my inspiration – and that’s when I started designing at college and finding out about design cut. In the Eighties it all started to be about big shapes and Dallas shoulders, but there was a sense of style about the Sixties and Seventies. I think that’s why we’ve gone back to square one with this new kit.”
Chris: As a man of style and taste, will we see you wearing the new England kit yourself?
Charlie: “I keep asking if I can I have one now, but Umbro say I have to wait for the launch. The whole project has been top secret and as I haven’t been allowed to talk about my involvement with the new shirt, keeping quiet has been the most difficult thing. I’d just love to tell people all about what I’ve been involved with, but I haven’t been able to. I can’t wait until it’s unveiled on March 28 so I can actually put it on myself.”
Chris: When you got involved with the first player fitting sessions, was there anything that surprised you?
Charlie: “One of the biggest surprises I’ve had since getting involved in this process is finding out that the players actually wear exactly the same shirt as the ones that the fans wear. I had always imagined that the England team must have had specially made shirts. It made sense to me that a player’s shirt should fit properly – after all, making sure that things fit is really what I’m about as a tailor.”
Chris: Is the fit of a sports garment really that important?
Charlie: “The fit is key. Many of today’s garments haven’t been designed to fit properly because each one has got to fit so many people – either small, medium or large. But after Umbro had settled on the concept of ‘Football Tailored’, it was decided that we should measure the players for their own kits. It all came as a bit of a shock to the players. When I started measuring them they said, ‘What are you doing? I’ve never been measured before for a shirt’. They were amazed when we explained that we had actually designed a shirt that was made to fit them.”
Chris: What was the most satisfying thing about the fitting sessions?
Charlie: “What I loved about it was that here were the best players from all those different teams around the country – they’re special anyway, but we’ve tried to create something to make them feel even more special. It’s very hard to explain what it means to have a bespoke garment. A lot of them haven’t even had suits made for them in the past as they’ve bought off the peg, so it made them feel special straight away.”
Chris: Is a fitting session really necessary?
Charlie: “Yes. Part of the process of making sure that everything fits is actually having measurements taken and a proper fitting session. To start with they didn’t understand why you have to have a fitting session. We had to explain – it’s so it fits you! Getting that message across was the first thing that we had to do and I think they all understand the importance of it now.”
Chris: How long did it take until the players really bought into the concept of a bespoke football kit?
Charlie: “I remember that Rio Ferdinand got into it straightaway. I used to make suits for his dad, who had actually modelled for me in one of my fashion shows many years ago, so he was right into it. And so were David James and Joe Cole too, while John Terry wanted to come and get some suits made. They loved being fussed over. Never before has a kit meant that much because usually it’s just another kit – they’re told to put it on and it should fit where it touches! But this time they’re getting a kit crafted to fit them.”
