Saints have released their new home kit for next season and it is another retro design, It's a nice kit, but it is not the strip that Southampton Football Club are associated with around the world.
Saints have announced their new strip for the coming season, I have to say I like the design, but it is not the shirt that Southampton Football Club should have as their first team kit, change strip yes.
Football Clubs are built on history and tradition and it is good to see that Saints are marking their 135th anniversary as they did 10 years ago for the 120th.
But very few people saw us in the sash kits of the 1889's whereas the whole world know us for our red & white stripes, just as Celtic our known for their hoops, Newcastle for their black & white stripes and Liverpool & Manchester United for their plain red shirts.
None of these clubs would contemplate changing the basic design, would Celtic ever play in Green & White stripes or Liverpool in red & white stripes, indeed Liverpool originally played in blue shirts, they certainly didn't bring that out as a centenary kit.
I am not claiming this is a poor design, it will be a popular kit, but when people see it they will not think Southampton Football Club as they do when they see a red & white striped shirt and that should tell us something.
These days football cubs talk of building the brand, our brand is not our colours, it is our strip, red & white stripes are like a logo, any football fan in the Uk if they see a red & white striped short will thing Saints, Stoke or Sunderland, they see this one and they will think it is a non league side.
The third kit seems to be a copy of the 2010 white kit with red sash with the second strip yet to be revealed
I am not being negative on this I truly like the designs of the kits, but I am a traditionalist and Saints play in red & white stripes, play around with that design do not make us some sort of fashion statement.
Many will like this kit, I will be one of them, but I look at what we are and this is not Southampton FC
The Saints press release reads as follows
Southampton Football Club has today unveiled its brand-new kits for the 2020/21 season. The club has released an arcade style video game, which takes players on a journey through its 135-year history to unlock the new home kit and mark the milestone year.
Called ‘Defying the Odds since 1885’, a nod to the club’s tenacious legacy, the video game features three levels for fans to conquer, each unlocking a different part of the new home kit once complete. Beginning in 1885 at the club’s inception and leading up to the present day, the levels, which see the player donning consecutive historic kits, represent different eras in the club’s history.
The goal of the game, which was produced by 'Tech Company of the Year’, UNIT9, is simple: dribble your way through history collecting as many points as possible by picking up various objects, avoiding obstacles and ‘defying the odds’ along the way. Taking a cue from the world of gaming, the experience includes a number of hidden references that only true Saints and football fans will notice, including club cult heroes such as Matt Le Tissier, Kevin Keegan, Ali Dia and Markus Liebherr. There are also various obstacles to avoid including rival Portsmouth players, Liverpool’s bank manager and Harry Redknapp in his Range Rover. The game also includes notable sights: Southampton City landmarks, the old Wembley where the club won the FA Cup in ’76, Southampton’s first stadium, the Dell, and the team’s current home, St Mary’s.
Both Saints fans and football enthusiasts alike are sure to appreciate the game’s level of detail and interactivity. What’s more, overall winners on the live leaderboard stand the chance to win an ultimate football gaming bundle featuring a PS4 or Xbox and FIFA 2020. Runners-up have the chance to win a signed 20/21 replica shirt or a stadium tour with Matt Le Tissier.