Man City VS York City: Buying Kits and Swapping Strips

Many clubs release more than one strip per season, so football fans who want to support their team will have a choice when looking to buy their kit. However this season Man City’s kit – available to purchase from www.sportsanddesign.com – includes three team shirts and two souvenir jerseys, more than any other club. They’ve come under fire from supporters who would have to shell out over £200 to afford all five pieces, with even the secretary of the team’s supporters club referring to third strips as ‘unnecessary’.

This is a stark contrast to second league club York City, who have announced that their fans will be able to get a hold of new club shirts simply by returning their old ones. It’s a gesture which will go a long way with York City supporters, whose kit has become outdated following a rebranding of the football club by sponsors Benenden Healthcare.

Mid-Season Strip Swap Unheard Of

The gesture has touched York City fans but probably wouldn’t have been possible for a larger club whose sponsorship deals, contracts and regulations would have made such a move financially impossible.

All of York City’s returned shirts will be donated to charities, with half of the profits to go towards projects helping deprived children in the UK and the other half go towards working with children in Africa.

A mid-season swap of this nature is practically unheard of in football, however, so the club’s offer – which includes free reprinting of names and numbers, and no additional postage charges – means fans will surely jump at the chance to acquire a new shirt whilst contributing to a worthwhile cause. The initiative has the full backing of York City’s patron the Archbishop of York, who was the first person to swap his shirt.

Donate Your Kit to Kits4Causes

There’s a long tradition of clubs using kits to help out charities and York City has taken the matter of charity fundraising into its own hands, however for supporters of other clubs who wish to donate their kits there is a charity which has been set up for this exact purpose.

Kits4Causes collects donated kits – including everything from shirts and shorts to training gear and balls – which it uses to support charities which work with disadvantaged youngsters around the world.