Sorry, We Need To Talk About The New England Kit

Nike and the Football Association released the new England national football team home, away, and goalkeeper kits this week, ahead of Euro 2024, and it would be fair to say that they caused a bit of a storm.
Not due to differences of opinion about the kit, as is always the case, or even the fact that the shirt costs between £85-125, but because of what Nike described as a 'playful update' to the flag of St George.
In this video, HITC Sevens takes a look at the new England kit, the manufactured and bizarre response to it, and what it tells us about modern England.
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[@KwisatzHaderach.22.]

Don't worry about the cross. In the end, it's about paying £125 for a shirt made by a toddler from Bangladesh, losing on penalties in the quarter finals and throwing beer at a French family you happen to be sitting next to

[@shawklan27]

Well shit that's depressing

[@Joker66623]

😂

[@iandoddsblah]

Another Elliott Steel fan, I see! 😍

[@gabsnandes7818]

Ahhhh the UK spirit

[@MrSinclairn]

LOL,so true ! 😂👌👍

[@nettlecider]

if everything is so woke these days why am I always without any energy and sleepy?

[@voiceofcrime]

this is the future the gay communists want unfortunately 😔

[@Linesjointspenaltypoints]

You need vitamin B12 bro Then you’ll be a bisexual reindeer with a rainbow flag like the rest

[@ryanh2479]

sounds like sleep apnea.

[@Jojo.R.Chipelago]

@@ryanh2479 the joke your head

[@dandasolo]

Checkmate, atheists.

[@EpicRenegade777]

Joey Barton feels like a match day pie gained sentience

[@TheDeathJesters1337]

10/10 comment, I'm officially tickled 😂

[@conalflood7895]

Disgraceful to compare a match day pie do that absolute clown

[@greycoloris7665]

"Sentience" implies some basic intelligence tho, so maybe more "awareness"?

[@ronmastrio2798]

Hilarious how he's more right than most of the people calling him stupid.

[@bestrafung2754]

He has to be joking, surely. It literally word for word sounds like something I say whenever I'm making fun of these lot.

[@iandhr1]

As an American, I can't tell you how comforting it is to listen to this video. It means that, despite appearances, we do not have a monopoly on this kind of stupidity in our national discourse. Seriously though I feel a lot dumber just listening to this.

[@dangillespie6075]

Nah mate, all this stuff comes from you. British might have colonised America but your societal and media imperialism is the perfect revenge. The the Brit’s have just tuned into your echo chamber.

[@shokosugi2346]

As another American, there isn't much in the political-adjacent realm that makes me smile as much as watching perpetually outraged people who accuse everyone else of being too sensitive getting publicly pantsed like this. Salud, cousin.

[@OscarOSullivan]

Northern Ireland will deeply interest you then

[@mphoenix158]

Don't worry you're not alone. In Germany some people were similarily outraged about the away kit being pink because that is (apparently) not a very manly colour.

[@Gideonsmythe]

I've been collecting kits for years so I'm part of the problem. In 1993 an "Authentic" players shirt (adidas Arsenal home with long sleeves) cost me £40 from the club shop. In that same year I moved out of home and rented a house. My rent and bills cost £400 pcm. In 2023 a players shirt costs about £125 (or a full Sky package for a month) and running a similar size house costs £1,900 per month. Objectively living costs rose faster than kit prices. So where's the media and political screaming about profiteering energy companies, landlords and the affordability of life in general?

[@evilbunny5950]

Erm, the cost of living crisis? Its been in the news at least once or twice thats for sure...

[@ipperz12]

The cost of football shirts to cost of living ratio has actually decreased then?

[@Gideonsmythe]

​@@ipperz12 Yes, though the problem comes when higher bills mean you have less money for football kits. In 1993 the average house price in London was £80,000. In 2023 it was £682,000.

[@ThePlayaJohn]

I don’t give a rats ass about the cross design the only thing way annoys me is the £125 price tag 😂

[@Jamie-uk2zh]

You should do if you care about England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

[@bababababababa6124]

125 bones is crazy

[@insertgenericusernamehere2402]

England is shit - from an Englishman​ @@Jamie-uk2zh

[@ashleyw6728]

​@@Jamie-uk2zh surely its only if you care about Turkey

[@MarioAgger]

Only mentally ill peoples would wear that flag on themselfs.

[@Intheflesh1]

The streets knew this video would come

[@JayloT93]

What's Mike Skinner got to do with it? 😮

[@bleedingpepper]

@@JayloT93You could say that the different iterations of the St George's flag has become... original pirate material.

[@everythingiscringe6522]

My boomer, get your mind out of the gutter and just dont buy this child labor made crap. Like any self respecting person would wear a football hit in public come on!

[@hitthurdeaux]

I can’t wait for the day Alfie grows out of his leftist phase

[@JayloT93]

@@hitthurdeaux up the marx 🥳🥰

[@simonward4032]

'Controversies' like this make me think Twitter is just a satire of real life

[@jamescooper3739]

Since I deleted twitter about 6 months ago, I'm sure it's no longer a real site with the "stories" that come out of it 😂

[@johnaarson]

I wish it was only Twitter. It is social media in general. And as social media and "real life" are mixing more and more with each passing year, those "controversies" are actually starting to be quite influential. It's a brave new world and it's not looking good.

[@TomaszRyszkowski]

up to 75% users on X are bots, most of the content you see is bot generated - according to a recent sutdy conducted during the super bowl. It's a sandbox for foreign powers to stir unrest in Europe and the US, and Elon Musk is all for it.

[@shawklan27]

Cuz it is

[@John_Kennedy27]

​@@johnaarsonor maybe people just love to complain about things that don't matter, and for whatever reason you think it's actually going to have some kind of impact on something

[@Avatar1977]

This week, I learned that the England kit has a cross on the collar

[@samwiseshanti]

Was going to make basically the same comment 😂. I was teaching a class when I saw something along the lines of 'controversy after the St George's cross on the England kit undergoes a redesign', and I couldn't grab my phone, so I spent the next 2 hours teaching grammar while racking my brain to try and think where the cross on the England kit is 😂

[@hair6789]

@@samwiseshanti Lol

[@Blaze-2457]

@@samwiseshanti😂 U prob teach the kids it’s okay to identify as what u want😂🤡🤡🤡

[@hair6789]

@@Blaze-2457 lol youre offended over the color of a cross what a snowflake

[@connieworroll368]

@@Blaze-2457how does that even correlate with what he said 🤣 brain rotted

[@patrickwilliams6143]

This isn't sports journalism. This is 40 minutes of outstanding and depressingly necessary polemic. One of your best pieces Alfie, well done mate.

[@magicien233]

The "people are offended by everything these days" people are offended again.

[@hitthurdeaux]

One group is offended when you disrespect a national symbol, the other is offended when you call a man in women’s clothing a “he”. I know common sense isn’t your forte, but really try to grasp this concept.

[@nervesconcord]

I think the only thing that ever bothers me is when people try and force their views on others. The problem is, injecting this identity politics stuff into everything often takes the form of taking something that is a part of something that someone else likes, watches, represents them or they feel like a part of etc, and then essentially forcing your own views into or onto it, like here with St George's cross. When you look at it, the "people are offended by everything these days" people you refer to are 99.999% are only ever 'offended' by this action, that I will assume people like you (I will assume from your opinion on this matter) support or are responsible for.

[@_______2107]

@@nervesconcordpretty long winded way of saying ‘no u’, but what else can be expected by someone who’s offended over the colour of a flag

[@artoro8]

@@nervesconcordBuddy, EVERYTHING is inserted with some kind of beliefs. It just never bothered you because they were YOUR beliefs. I'm straight but if we've always shown straight relationships in every piece of media, then it's also fair to show lesbian/gay/bi relationships. Literally how is that not fair? It makes no sense how people think things are becoming "woke" when stuff that normal humans do are being shown. Left handedness would be "woke" today. Letting women read, get education, get jobs, vote, etc. would be "woke" today. It's a different time in the world, learn to accept it.

[@theshabbycommenter]

@@nervesconcord What is the St. George's cross referring to? It clearly doesn't fit any known lgbt flag, not even the bisexual one (the colours order does not match).

[@richcartwright889]

The Joey Barton tweet left me in stitches.

[@joshmiller7777]

😂😂😂Same here, truly hitting new lows. Surely he's becoming a parody of himself

[@joshmiller7777]

Also, never have I seen a man as insecure in his masculinity as Joey Barton!

[@goyonman9655]

​@@joshmiller7777 If you criticize me, I'll call you insecure This is a very lame tactic

[@joshmiller7777]

@@goyonman9655 I take it you are a fan of Barton, yet you clicked on this video?

[@goyonman9655]

@@joshmiller7777 Not really a fan of Barton He's not fynd if Nigerians I watch HITC so I clicked What does this have to do wuth your bulverism

[@SometimesCompitent]

As an MLS fan, I’m glad to see the New England Revolution getting so much attention in Europe.

[@nathanmurray9804]

My brain glitched each time the words “new England” were said in this

[@patrickracer43]

Also, I thought the New England Revolution's kit was made by Adidas like the rest of the MLS, maybe I'd like a Philadelphia Union Nike kit

[@wizard8443]

When is it said

[@neepheid]

The last time I bought a newspaper, it was to cover the floor when I did some painting. Despite not reading one word of it, I still felt dirty buying it.

[@dagothher]

as a trans woman id like to apologise for the beckham penalty and the sending off, i personally told them both to do it or soros wont give them their paycheque

[@ILikedGooglePlus]

Thanks xoxo Now please apologise for Southgate's penalty, and for Gerrard and Lampard not playing well together

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

You're a man

[@lilbaz8073]

Too late.

[@ethandalton6480]

​@@BeBe-vh4rydeliberately misgendering a faceless stranger on the Internet for no reason, what an odd thing to do.

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

@@ethandalton6480 it's just a playful update 🤷🏼‍♂️

[@Chilavertish]

Given that Hamas ideology is so closely aligned with and supportive of the lgbt community, it makes complete sense that their interests would be symbolically combined on the back collar of the England football shirt

[@duncanrathband5492]

🤣

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

There is a video of an Iman suggesting that Palestine is suffering because god is upset that the gays support them 😂

[@HarvesterYT]

Hamas is an Islamic group. Muslims are some of the least supporting people of the LGBT community. All you're doing is trying to combine all the things you've been told to hate into one thing.

[@Jojo.R.Chipelago]

This makes SO much sense, I always knew extremist Muslims were behind this LGBTQ propaganda!!!!!!!!1!!

[@og_praxis17]

This would be the funniest thing I've read in ages if it also didn't make me feel deeply sad

[@adamdickinson2894]

The Venn diagram of people complaining about this kit and people complaining about women's football existing is just a circle

[@PhilB88]

And mainly consists of middle aged men who constantly spout "people are so easily offended these days"

[@sirsurnamethefirstofhisnam7986]

It’s not because I like lionesses a lot and hate how ugly that flag is they are mutually exclusive it’s not hard to get the St George cross right

[@celtic69]

Chuck in people who label others “snowflakes” for complaining about racism

[@celtic69]

@@sirsurnamethefirstofhisnam7986 it’s a tiny little cross on the back of the collar, why do you care? did you care all the other times they did it?

[@adamdickinson2894]

@@sirsurnamethefirstofhisnam7986 that was nearly as convincing as the acting in my year 4 nativity play

[@MatchaTako]

As Indonesian, i didn't even know sumatra has a flag. Bruh your knowledge is impressive man.

[@KeyserSoze23]

what's your thought on the Free Papua Movement?

[@someguy4512]

@@KeyserSoze23 what's your thought on the Gaza-Israeli war?

[@MatchaTako]

@@KeyserSoze23 here's the thing you need to know about Indonesia man. If it's not Java, government don't give a shit about another island (like Sumatra, Borneo, Sulawesi, and Papua) thanks to Soeharto. But since Jokowi became president, another island got attention they need. I know they not satisfied because anything still expensive in there. But another island will catch up with java (I hope). Btw Indonesia have a lot movement like this, for example free Aceh movement.

[@giraffestreet]

​@@MatchaTakoBendera Sumatra Timur masa Republik Indonesia Serikat

[@Meow_Zedong_1949]

We're in the middle of a cost of living crisis. Our public infrastructure and services are falling apart but reactionaries are more worried about a bit of stitching on a shirt. They're not even talking about the extortionate price of the shirt?

[@NR-fd9wv]

they don't have any solutions for the real problems, so distracting people from that with nonsense is the best strategy they have

[@andrasszabo1570]

Looks like someone used 1984 as a manual rather than a cautionary tale... Who cares about real world issues when the Sun and the Mail can come up with imaginary ones?

[@suburbanyobbo9412]

So why are people of the left allowing themselves to be distracted?

[@ronmastrio2798]

@@NR-fd9wv I didn't realise it was up to Baz down the pub to draw up an election manifesto. Anyway your lot are probably gonna win the next election and do no better I wonder if you'll have the same criticism for your own or whether you'll continue to blame the powerless.

[@eichhornemil]

Bro you literally sitting here with a Palestine flag and complaining about people who complain about the current thing which is pushed again, you are so deep in and part of the system propaganda it’s unbelievable Ludacris!

[@jimmydella7233]

It's the same bs here in Australia. The common denominator for the cause you ask? Murdoch

[@newdelhiman3083]

As a bisexual person, im very glad that we are the sole representation of england according to Barry 63 from Sutton

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

Nice bit of ageism thrown in with your classism. You forgot to mention Barry's white van.

[@windmillcollecter4440]

@@BeBe-vh4ry Oh my god do you want a tissue? You gotta be a very angry little man to take issue with that comment.

[@Dany126PL]

​@@BeBe-vh4ry Everyone we found Barry 63 from Sutton.

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

@@Dany126PL everyone, we found another racist anti-racist, one of those plums that talks about tolerance while being completely intolerant, quick guys!

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

@@Dany126PL it's so wonderful how you 'tolerant' people are so inclusive of everyone, and have so much self-awareness

[@danbanfield9764]

One of the worst arguments is "no other country has had their flag changed" when Brazil had the exact same thing done to theirs

[@Diogo85]

That's a bad argument for anyone to make about kits.

[@mintywebb]

But that England have done it several times before and no one cares says everything about you, you lemon.

[@tevildo45]

They done it to multiple USA kits and Irish kits as well

[@iandoddsblah]

No to mention the England (and Union) flags on numerous occasions for numerous reasons!

[@kolsson1596]

This kit looks waaay better than the ugly version England had in the World Cup two years ago. But that crap did people not react on. So strange.

[@CrazyInsanelikeafox]

It looks like the Chevrolet logo.

[@pippip8744]

Will probably sell as well as they did in the UK

[@T.E.S.S.]

i think you're going blind mate

[@Tintelinus]

Oh god its worse than everyone thought, it represents the french

[@mattpotter8725]

A brand that just is hardly anywhere in the UK, oh and it looks nothing like as well!!!

[@luisangulo9593]

The WOKE Chevrolet logo

[@e_o_zoca]

In Brasil we also modify our flag in games. It's common to see the central blue circle replaced by a club's crest

[@jaykay3889]

As an American, it’s comforting to see we’re not alone in this kind of lunacy.

[@abasudoh7459]

I remember seeing a video some time ago when one of their conservative politicians said that their next plan was to bring a culture war. It might have even been in one of Alfie's videos.

[@DaftRaincloud]

Conservatives the world over saw that Trump was able to harness the outrage factory that social media lends itself to and sold out their morals to culture war nonsense in order to grasp any amount of power they could get their hands on.

[@ElBarcoGaming]

The levels of sarcasm in this are off the scale. Fantastic stuff

[@jrton1366]

It’s easy to be sarcastic when you make a 38 minute video without mentioning the publicly stated intent behind the change as given by Nike. “A playful update to the 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 of St. George appears on the collar to unite and inspire.” The implication being that the English flag does not “unite”, because of the (tenuous) links to the far right that people of HITCs political persuasion project onto it. The fact he doesn’t acknowledge this statement the entire video tells you he knows exactly what it means but shatters his narrative that this was just a hehehe innocent playful update hehe!

[@1porter]

@@jrton1366 gosh those are a lot of words to say you're mad at a kit design

[@jamesdrummond7684]

@@jrton1366 you're off your rocker kiddo. just admit you're a homophobe, we already know

[@John_Kennedy27]

​@@jrton1366it's just a football kit, they haven't changed the flag. Relax. If you don't like it, don't buy it, and they'll change it back for the money

[@arturoflash]

​@@jrton1366You either didn't watch the video or you are deaf and forgot to put captions on because he quite literally repeated Nike's statement at least once

[@joemorris1282]

It really is amazing how those that use the term "snowflakes" so often, can display such outrage over something so trivial. Dare I say, acting like "snowflakes"?

[@phigbill]

.... and also let's not forget, they're against cancel culture as well, yet boycott and try to cancel anything that their smooth brains can't calculate. There are a few constants in life, gravity, taxes, death and that gammon is always going to be salty.

[@kevbarker8108]

I mean you're just kind of creating an environment where no one's allowed to care about anything and nothing is allowed to be important to anyone

[@SoAaron_]

@@kevbarker8108 Good point, but maybe they shouldn't be calling others snowflakes

[@langletprolet8378]

​@@kevbarker8108 If its one side that does this: "Look at these snowflakes crying, fake outrage over nothing!". When its the other side doing it: "This is something important!"

[@kevbarker8108]

@@SoAaron_ who who the f*** is calling anyone else a snowflake? You can't just go well. They did it first. That's why I'm going to be an a****** back to them. Just makes you an a****** as well.

[@bababababababa6124]

As much as I genuinely don’t see what the huge issue is, I can kinda understand where people’s anger comes from. Here in Nigeria people are mad at our kits for not being “Green” enough like the flag 😂

[@insertgenericusernamehere2402]

Watch the full video then you can understand why it's a none issue.

[@theangrykbdist]

Im a Nigerian also, and it's an issue that only someone on a full stomach cares about

[@shawklan27]

​@@theangrykbdist it's not a issue when we consistently produce the best kits in world football but yeah people gotta complain about something

[@T.E.S.S.]

interesting point because the home england kit isn't even in the colours of the flag - we should play in red and white, not blue and white. but the morons don't seem to care about that.

[@joegilbert3149]

​@insertgenericusernamehere2402 that's it then. we are not all the same, some people that are less patriotic would have a different stand point than people that are.

[@treverjensen1387]

The U.S. and England are always in a contest to seem different from each other when in reality we couldn't be more alike

[@jakelennon5299]

"But this is OUR flag!!!" *Georgia entered the chat*

[@octavianpopescu4776]

Genoa, Milan and Bologna have also entered the chat. 😀

[@ronmastrio2798]

@@octavianpopescu4776 Try telling all of those places that the crest doesn't matter and they should change it too.

[@mancunioner]

@@ronmastrio2798stop with the sense talk. It’s not welcome around here

[@elGringo69]

They entered the chat in 1991 LOL

[@Karrimor18]

"Everything I hate or don't understand is woke"

[@Diogo85]

That's exactly the kind of mindset I see from these people.

[@oj397]

@alorienoriowho in tf says that, if you want to be more accurate while hiding your intentions say facist or n**i

[@joegilbert3149]

Woke is changing stuff for the sake of it and making things worse to make the few not the many happy.

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

"Anyone that disagrees with my agenda is a Nazi"

[@glennb6020]

@alorienorio standard right wing, severely lacking creativity

[@thomasdodd2548]

The cost is truly criminal, never mind the lack of a proper flag on the collar

[@boredperson8x]

I can’t remember any england kits including anything half interesting on a collar. The cost?! Oh my, it’s ghastly isn’t it?

[@iandawe948]

Yet the proper flag as hardly ever been on the kit. Whatever a proper flag is 🤣🤣🤣

[@thomasdodd2548]

@iandawe948 Yeah, that's a good point. but if you're gonna do it, do it with, you know, the flag of England, instead of whatever that's supposed to be.

[@bundesautobahn7]

Imagine if Nike were to outsource the jersey production to Fanatics, like they did in baseball. You'd be paying 125 Pounds for basically a near transparent jersey that shouldn't cost even 10 Pounds at Tesco. Germany is changing to Nike in 2027 after over seven decades with Adidas. I dread the worst, cheap kits that shouldn't cost more than 5 Euros but sold for 130 Euros just because of the swoosh. England to me is forever linked with Umbro, Germany with Adidas, Austria with Puma, France can be either Adidas or Le Coq Sportif. But money talks...

[@222dolson]

I think you missed the point t of the video

[@mrmr446]

To me it says so much that the meaning was decided by people who were looking for a reason to lose their shit with nothing coming from the makers. That parts of the media have decided to turn this nothingburger into a campaign issue really isn't surprising seeing as that is cheaper and easier than actual journalism.

[@WookieWarriorz]

what does 'a playful update to the flag' mean ? seems like theyre trying to say theyre playfully adding something ?

[@mrmr446]

@@WookieWarriorz why can't it mean exactly what it says? Alleged conspiracy makes no sense, in what way would Nike benefit from being subtle with any message?

[@dairebeare7839]

​@@WookieWarriorzit means "we're charging 125 quid for a shirt, we need to act like we're selling something new and innovative". Marketing people love to tweak the colour of something and act like they've discovered fire. That's all it is.

[@222dolson]

Its also a tip to the past taking the form of a retro inspired kit. Any need to try to dig deeper is just trolling or ignorance. The price is likely to pay for the r and d on the new knitting pattern to reduce sticking to players when sweaty

[@lordpelagius5078]

See that explains the twitter outrage and press Why the hell politicians think this is worth their time when... *waves arms at state of country* At least sunak has the excuse that he's desperate Starmer is 20 points ahead in the polls so why he thinks it's worth caring about is probably bad advise by people who want two tory parties

[@dazwold]

Thank you for being the voice of reason Alfie. I honestly hadn't even considered the fact that the St. George Cross was even altered previously. I was initially confused rather than offended why Nike and the FA went down this route, but I for one an actually more offended that in times of severe financial hardship for millions of families, that an England shirt is worth £125.

[@meowwww9275]

At first i thought "why would you give this absolute embarrassment of a news story 40 mins of your time?" Then i watched the vid, like always it is funny, educational and entertaining but more than that, your message needs to be said, and I'd put this forward as a perfect example of true journalism. One could say it is a polite and well researched "fuck you" to bigotry, but it is more than that, it is a deconstruction of public outrage and deep dive into the fallacies they hold so dear.

[@aaa6072]

As a gay communist worker in London, I'm glad I can live rent free in Joey Barton's head

[@shoot91]

whay are you gay

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

What an utterly, utterly bizarre comment. Enjoy your rent costs and knife crime, comrade.

[@samuelschonenberger]

If only that rent free inside people's head only turned into these rich wierdos paying your actual rent

[@joegilbert3149]

Gay communist worker fuck me 😂

[@damian597]

You would support ARSEnal

[@vamtired]

It'll be so unbelievably funny if we win the Euros with this kit

[@sanishshrestha6454]

The flag would get a playful change officially

[@thacrypt223]

Not happening with Southgate in charge 😂😂😂.

[@ethandalton6480]

​@@JimmyJenkswhy are you so angry?

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

​@@thacrypt223loves Palestine, hates England. Standard lefty

[@John_Kennedy27]

​@@thacrypt223I'm sure he's the problem

[@lanapearce9968]

I'm just disappointed the away shirt is not red. Also, if your argument matches Joey Barton's, you need to ask some serious questions about yourself!

[@mintywebb]

Eh? Did you type that on the short bus or waiting for it?

[@MrFinbarz]

​@mintywebb short bus? Wrong country bro!

[@jorgetwo4279]

I'm not english, I just think it looks silly. Much like I'd think any "playful update" on any flag would be. Unless the country itself is wanting the change, this is just a company making a poor attempt at design.

[@lirror4910]

Interesting, there was an outcry in Germany because of the pink away shirt, by groups with conservative to rigth wing views. In the end it's one of the best selling shirts in the history of the German national team. Adidas and the DFB anticipated the outcry and played it well.

[@psmart4948]

every desision is made at just the right time, for just the hysteria flowing about

[@symptomofsouls]

Tbf a pink kit for a nation that is supposed to be renowned for their aggression and toughness is really dumb. It does not represent the country's mentality at all. I always admired that part of their game, the "run for 90 minutes" mentality. It's gone now

[@SirAntoniousBlock]

I think Goering had some nice pink uniforms.

[@GothPaoki]

Yea pink shirt went so well Germany ditched adidas after 70 years...

[@lirror4910]

@@GothPaoki 50 Million € per year from Adidas vs confirmed 100 Million € per year from Nike. You have to be braindead to choose Adidas over Nike under those circumstances. But Adidas doesn't seem to care about German teams. Only 2 out of 18 Bundesliga teams have a deal with Adidas.

[@Jsimpson90]

The sarcasm is gold 😂

[@Wilko710]

It's like the meme where he's crying behind the smile mask.

[@MattSaysHello]

Thank you Alfie! Really appreciate you covering this.

[@erchie01]

For decades, England assumed the Union Jack was the English flag, thousands still do. Look at the footage of Wembley in 1966, how many St George’s Crosses are there? The vast majority are Union Jacks. For the Admiral England kits of the late 70’s and early 80’s, they’re white, blue and red, to tie in with the colours of the UJ.

[@brgracio]

A lot of people outside the UK still make that confusion.

[@RW-nr6bh]

​@@brgracio​ A lot of people refer to the Netherlands as Holland and the former USSR as Russia. England does lack a bit in terms of a separate identity from the UK as a whole; it doesn't have its own anthem except at the Commonwealth Games.

[@needfoolthings]

Dozens still think that thousands still think the Union Jack is the English flag when it is millions who do.

[@Josh-pj7tq]

​@@RW-nr6bhthats cause the UK identity is based on english identity

[@chumanimlindi1535]

@@Josh-pj7tqand after all they make the majority of the British population

[@Hijo_De_Afrique]

The most American tantrum I have seen the English throw.

[@Thatguyinyourclass]

Well we're in a election year so American outrage is focused on the other party. As soon as November I'm sure some of the outrage will go back to whatever they deem is "woke"

[@soundscape26]

Well, considering these stupid cultural wars are imported from there it makes sense.

[@Mr.Byrnes]

You haven’t been paying attention to England very much, huh? They’ve been throwing tantrums at Europe for, what? 409 years? Lmfao

[@grumsta]

Literally the same people who say 'everyone is offended by everything these days' who are getting offended by this (or pretending to for money).

[@owenfitzgerald5928]

I rely solely on HITC Sevens for all news

[@kingeatking]

If that's true then I feel sorry for your brain cells 🙄

[@owenfitzgerald5928]

@@kingeatking its absolutely not true hes not an actual news source but i do agree with him on pm everything i have heard

[@Crackparty803]

That's a bad idea, Alfie is a complete melt who doesn't leave his bubble.

[@bababababababa6124]

@@owenfitzgerald5928I agree but he doesn’t upload often enough to be the only source of news, so you gotta follow other channels too

[@owenfitzgerald5928]

@@Crackparty803 how do you know and I do leave my bubble and still agree with him

[@djevo5662]

It's mental that people are getting angry over a inch cross but never mentioned why we don't wear white and red. Instead we wear Scottish colours, white and blue

[@langletprolet8378]

Now that's the real question

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

The coat of arms you absolute genius 😂😂😂

[@ChryskylodonInstitute]

outrage for the sake of outrage. lots of manchilds

[@T.E.S.S.]

@@BeBe-vh4ry that's red with golden lions, you muppet

[@Flame-jw1hy]

bc the england badge has blue white and a bit of red on it 💀 it's not based on the flag it's based on the badge

[@56postoffice]

"One of the greatest minds of our time, the England legend Joey Barton-" 😂😂had to stop right there from choking with laughter!!

[@zergbong]

nobody outside england knows what is the difference between the reebok flag and the reverse swiss flag. nobody outside uk/england knows why do you bring your flag to vacations on the black sea. nobody.

[@piotrdawidziuk2604]

I have to disappoint you, but Polish fans also love to write stuff on Polish flag during matches. Pay attention during the Polish team games and you'll see flags with names of different towns and cities like Kłodzko or Radom written on them. Also there is a famous Tyskie beer Polish flag that was distributed during Euro 2012.

[@xeonaught6942]

we have a small polish community where I live and they see me and the lads with tyskie all the time 🤣🤣

[@RustyVenture98]

The fact that these people will fight tooth and nail against this amorphous thing that they’ve made up but can't even define, but when it comes to more children living below the poverty line since records began they don’t give a flying fuck, this is just so insane to me and then they double down by saying that they are the side of logic and facts is laughable.

[@mancunioner]

Explain how people get other children out from below the poverty line when most are fighting to keep theirs above that line

[@theredheadproject]

I have the limited edition 2011 shirt (where the flags are all over it, rather than just on the shoulder panel), and I love it. I just always thought it was a cool design.

[@thepebblesexplore83]

That’s not the New England kit. That’s the new England kit. The revolution don’t have a new kit

[@chimalifts6373]

In all fairness, changing the colours of the flag means it is no longer that flag. It’s like saying Scotland and Jamaica have the same flag.

[@Sparks923]

This whole video is spot on. It's not opinions. It's just facts. Beautifully said.

[@ashleyw6728]

I still don't understand what the problem is

[@GrimReaper-er8uu]

It's not the England flag as in the red and white flag being used in a very small part of the kit. The real thing everyone has a problem with is what may stand for and it's being used as a proxy to target queer communities and various other minorities. Bit shit innit.

[@lesliegrace8360]

The problem is because of you.

[@VelvetMetrolink]

Nor does anyone who is angry about it. They just needed something to be angry about.

[@stalfithrildi5366]

Snowflake fash needed a newer toy to throw out of their pram

[@Diogo85]

​​@@lesliegrace8360 Rude much? She was only asking a question.

[@elliej354]

Thanks for the video Alfie. As a Scottish person who has been looking across the border and scratching her head at the absurdity of this whole manufactured scandal, I'm glad to hear an English voice mocking the whole situation for the farce that it is. You know logically in your head that it's not remotely reflective of how the majority of English people actually think, but when you have even the man that's very probably going to be the next prime minister of the whole fucking union pretending to care about it for clout, it's hard not to despair at times. So appreciate seeing English football fans with platforms like yourself calling the whole thing out as nonsense.

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

Scottish people would riot if there was a rainbow saltire, get a grip

[@MrFinbarz]

​@BeBe-vh4ry don't judge everyone else by your own sub normal standard.

[@Joeking211]

​@BeBe-vh4ry not a rainbow on the St George's Cross though, is it. Get a grip!

[@elliej354]

​@@BeBe-vh4ry Never said that Scottish people were above this kind of nonsense, but cool straw man you've built there. You absolutely would see some Scottish people reacting in the same absurd, overblown way if they changed the colours of a tiny saltire on our strip. And I would find it just as ridiculous as I do here. My issue is less with a handful of idiots working themselves into a frenzy over the most mundane shit imaginable, which happens everywhere and in response to basically everything, and more with journalists, politicians, and talking heads whipping up a handful of those frankly absurd reactions into a national scandal, pretending that that level of outrage is reflective of an entire nation or even a majority of its people, and entertaining absolutely wild conspiracy theories over what is, at very worst, a not very good football strip. Absolutely no issue with someone simply disliking the strip or thinking the colours of the flag shouldn't be changed (though as Alfie points out, it's hardly the first time). But pretending it's some sign of the downfall of society or a woke gay conspiracy, and treating it as a scandal worthy of personal comment from major politicians? Fuck right on out of here with that shite. Also, it's not a rainbow. It's not even a bisexual flag. Jesus fucking christ. If you're seeing gay boogeymen around every corner and spotting queer pride symbols in places where most queer people don't even see them, then maybe the problem is you.

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

@@MrFinbarz how many Scottish people do you know? Melt

[@shokosugi2346]

All right, get a hold of yourself, dude. Rooney's red card had nothing to do with transgenders. The feminists were responsible for that one. I'll give you the Beckham free kick though, that was definitely trans people. Brilliant video.

[@rimram3250]

You fill a very big void in football commentary. I have yet to find another more informed and class conscious channel than yours. Within football content that is, but we all know you do so much more. Thank you!

[@BrianStorm742]

This 100%

[@ronmastrio2798]

Lol "class conscious" like most lefties he's a rich kid with a guilty conscience who looks down on most of the working class because they're too stupid to know whats best for them. You've had this song and dance for well over a hundred years now and failed every time.

[@Cykelpump33]

I'm baffled how many people in the comments don't make a big deal about the very flag of their nation being changed on a kit. If someone made something similar to the flag of my country Sweden, I would been absolutely furious and not support the national team one bit. History and culture is important. But I guess that doesn't matter for modernity.

[@lucuslovesyou2961]

You're a big baby then

[@Me-ui1zy]

As talked about in this video, its part of the UK, and England's history and culture to alter the flag. Its has been done thousands of times. And I guess you are a snowflake of a Swede then, I know many Swedish people and none of them would be crying about slightly changing the flag. Conservatives are such pathetic little whiny crybabies.

[@soundscape26]

It's a small flag on the collar of an alternative kit... not sure why you're making it seem like they're erasing their history and culture.

[@Cykelpump33]

@@soundscape26 It's not an "flag" small fry. It's an ugly updated version that nobody asked for. The original flag is simple but pretty. Why change it? Oh, you western people and your ignorance...

[@cutez0r]

Many people feel like things are changing for the worse and this kit controversy is the perfect low-hanging fruit that people can vent their frustrations at.

[@GorgeDawes]

And thereby helping to avoid any serious coverage or discussion of the reasons why they feel like things are changing for the worse. A chronic lack of affordable housing? A meltdown in the healthcare sector? State-sponsored corruption on an unprecedented scale? Too complicated, I’m going to get very angry about someone slightly changing the colours on a very small flag instead!

[@rudolf2002]

I've been saying for a long time that conservatives are the ones who care most about diversity... Hallucinating pride flags anywhere, it's like there's nothing else they can think about! I bet if you asked people to identify all distinct pride flags, conservatives would get the most right haha. If only they put this much effort into something actually valuable for society

[@felixmustermann790]

if conservatives care most about diversity, leftists care most about race

[@BeBe-vh4ry]

The irony of you calling Patriots 'flag shaggers' when you have 17 different flags based on shagging 😂

[@ninjalectualx]

No, we care about human rights. It's you conservative racists who make it about race

[@himthatis6698]

This video is up there with your Richarlison video on modern Britain. TBH Alfie, the first thing I noticed about the Jamie O'Hara post, that you put up, was that he cared more about that flag issue than the difference between when to use there, their or they're. "..give our players there flag back". The less said about the lack of punctuation the better. I don't care about being churlish anywhere near as much as I care about the standards, all of them, disappearing down the drain in the UK. For the third time this week I will, depressingly, say this; I haven't lived in the UK for 14 years, and whilst I have harboured ideas of one day possibly returning, sadly, more and more that idea is very unappealing.

[@Ryan1993uk]

im honestly more confused why the World Cup star above the badge is always the same colour as the shirt now, are we ashamed of showing it off or something?

[@KurtDangerfield]

Well said. People crying on about this are absolutely pathetic

[@kieronparr3403]

Your take on rememberance should be heard by all. Its just become a competition over who can "remember more" with tacky nonsense. Originally poppies were hand made by members of the british legion and sold by them. Now they are made by jewelers etc.

[@jrton1366]

Yes such a unique take. Not a take that is parroted by sixth formers across the country every November, coming up with ever edgier reasons not to be put their hand in their pocket and give to a good cause. Alfie has never grown out of those days it sounds like.

[@ninjalectualx]

Most are surely made in China these days

[@kieronparr3403]

@@ninjalectualx probably, that stuff is why it's losing its meaning.

[@RW-nr6bh]

Last season I stood in three separate silences for Remembrance at football matches. There should be at most just one, on the match closest to, or on, the 11th. There were no remembrance silences when I started watching football in the early 1990s.

[@jrton1366]

@@RW-nr6bh take it your keen to stop rainbow laces and was keen for taking the knee to stop as well?

[@abnormalanorak]

This video is literally, and I mean it unironically, what I have been waiting for. The discourse and metadiscourse behind it is insane and fun to study, if you're not English, I suppose!

[@a.ychristian3562]

Moral of Story: fuck the news companies

[@TheKingmagger]

We need to talk about the obscene price, not some meaningless detail.

[@T.E.S.S.]

he did

[@15KMH]

Here in Germany there was a similar discourse when they revealed the away jerseys to be pink, despite Germany having had a similar color in the past. The only thing I don't understand is why would a company purposefully make these designs when they know about the "outrage" it will cause.

[@Q-hv2cb]

As long as it looks good it's fine for me. We ain't winning the cup anyways

[@jyhan1q94]

Because they, them being executives and shareholders, did it purposefully? They don't care about the what kind of service sold, net worth, productivity of companies they own because they won't lose money.

[@ranzroffel2692]

I think the kit looks great. Well... here in Germany we had a huge discussion about our pink away shirt. Even politicians made statements about it, so it's not only an English problem. In Germany they complained that the away shirt is not male enough.

[@0ri0n_Atlas]

Ironic as pink used to be considered a really masculine colour back in the Victorian era. Plus, I think it looks great

[@ranzroffel2692]

@@0ri0n_Atlas my thought brother

[@OldToothbrush0210]

If Juventus can look great in pink, why not others?

[@Serge-cm5my]

​@GatlingArbalest0210 That's a part of their history. These shirts are playing politics.

[@Linesjointspenaltypoints]

@@Serge-cm5mypink is just a colour bro. You are making it political by saying it’s a some sort of statement. Feeding the problem a bit. No personal attack here, many people are the same right now. Woke movement isn’t worth paying attention to, although neither is the anti-woke campaign. If people just stopped arguing over silly stuff the problems would go away and we could focus on actual issues

[@TheScorpionbites]

I don't see the point of this video. You can change the team crest all you want but you dont change the country flag.... period

[@1porter]

Except England has done that, several times. In fact, the flag has never been on a shirt 'unchanged'. Most of the time it's not on the shirt. You really need to get over this.

[@TheScorpionbites]

@@1porter It was done several times in the past doesn't make it right..... it was wrong then its wrong now.....

[@lordpelagius5078]

How dare anyone bismerch the memory of a likley fictional lebanese knight who never vistited england and was only adopted as a symbol by 14th century king edward 3rd who was obbsessed with knights

[@lordpelagius5078]

Fun story it's also the flag of genoa

[@anthonykeane4984]

Before then it was 3 lions on a red background coat of arms of the royals probably a better flag tbh .better than the flag of greek,middle eastern or north african soldier who may like you said be mythological

[@ronmastrio2798]

I wonder if you'd be this flippant if they did it to any other country I hear the Palestinian flag could use some rainbow colouring.

[@lordpelagius5078]

@@ronmastrio2798 i confirm i would 100% not care if you think flags are more worth protecting than people then you need to think about your priorities and as a second point, you do realise they haven't redesigned the actual flag of England its a pattern on a shirt... people as pointed out in the video have been modding the England flag for decades otherwise ill assume youre also gonna come after the people who add that daft blue line in it

[@jo_magpie]

These people are unhinged, thank god twitter isn't real life.

[@florianritter147]

It's so funny to me that literally the exact same silly debate broke out in Germany when the pink away kit for the euros came out lmao

[@lianrose88]

Alfie Potts Harmer - hope you see this through all the discourse to know that you are recognised as a real one in this daft and crazy world . I genuinely wish all the best for you and will always cherish your thoughtfully pitched & sarcastic, aggressively researched yet morally grounded, fearless with jest, high quality work every week. Please, never stop your talent in clowning potatoes and your unhealthy relationship with gettyimages and Freddy Adu jokes 🙏

[@craigfairlie9247]

The adaptation of the Scotland flag on the kit you used in this video is great. I was 11 or 12 when that kit came out, had it, wore the life out of it as did many other kids my age. It's also iconic from the point of view of that the kit was worn when Scotland famously beat France in France in 2006.

[@saileille]

The real problem with that flag is that it is ugly as hell.

[@LupoGalante]

The irony being that Saint George would now be getting demonised as a "shifty" turkish-greek immigrant by all the same people outraged by the "defacing" of his symbol...

[@ronmastrio2798]

Not all immigrants are the same buddy equating a martyr to rapey Abdul is peak cultural relativism.

[@bb-double-yuh]

Why did I assume by the title that we were talking about the New England Revolution? (MLS team)

[@daviebananas1735]

Absolutely summed up my feelings on the matter. Brilliant. Not only in the football matters, but the whole summing up of politics in the modern world. Genuinely fantastic. I hope a lot of people view this and realise they’re angry at the wrong things.

[@guymontag3051]

Have watched several videos over last few months, but this one made me subscribe. Well put! By the way, what does HITC Sevens mean?

[@mancunioner]

Is this a non-issue if New Balance did something similar with the Basque flag on the Athletic Club shirt or would any pushback against that be justified?

[@UnbelievableEricthegiraffe]

I have a relative who was given shares for Nike by a grandparent on her 2qst birthday, She doesn't like football, but with all the publicity from the England kit, Her shares are worth more than last month, No such thing as bad publicity.

[@TomJonty]

Reading some of the comments screaming at you Alfie that this is actually a very big deal and realising that there's a decent chance some of those commenters have children, and wondering how they don't feel deeply embarrassed explaining to a kid that the reason they are apoplectic with rage is the collar of a football shirt.

[@victortaveira8271]

Perfectly

[@ronmastrio2798]

It's perfectly understandable to be angry about a national flag being altered for no reason.

[@suckieduckie]

What I find fascinating is that I see a lot of overlap between people who very much care about their identity, wether it be sexual orientation or else, and people who are saying the symbol that stands for their national identity doesn't matter. Seems like a paradox.

[@victortaveira8271]

@@suckieduckie If a nation doesn’t embrace all members giving all rights and responsibilities, people will never really belong to it. Nike used all variations of color, that these same symbol appeared in England National Team shirt.

[@suckieduckie]

@@victortaveira8271 The point of a flag is that it represents everyone in the nation. You don't need a bisexual flag for that as the nations flag already represents the bisexuals in them.

[@supersasukemaniac]

Funny from the video's title, i wasn't thinking the Three Lions, i was thinking the New England Revolution.

[@judechauhan6715]

Nice colours but tbh I'd prefer the cross in all red or all the other colours, mixing both looks a bit confusing for my eyes it's just a random patch.

[@jomichel3594]

This just reminds me of the time where England bullied a German girl after a Picture of her crying during the game appeared on Social Media after Germany's lost at the 2021 EM against England

[@marcusmoore9043]

I don't know that I've ever heard that put so eloquently. Thank you for the content. It's always comforting to know you're not alone in your exasperation.

[@scpjack7856]

My problem with it is that it *isn’t* woke. It doesn’t mean anything, they just made my country’s flag ugly for no good reason. If it was a rainbow I’d be fine.

[@insertgenericusernamehere2402]

It's always been ugly 😂 it's a bloody cross

[@Crackparty803]

This is a good take tbh.

[@T.E.S.S.]

what a load of confused nonsense

[@insertgenericusernamehere2402]

@@steveblundell7766 hahaha nice projection mate

[@chrisharris5843]

Whenever a news story such as this becomes the main focus, it's best to look at what actual news is being buried which you have quite rightly highlighted in the form of the DWP report, alongside numerous other pressing concerns this country should have. Super video, thanks for doing it.

[@rustyrench4278]

This was the biggest nothing burger in my life I think . I feel like i'm insane.

[@kolsson1596]

This kit looks waaay better than the ugly version England had in the World Cup two years ago. But that crap did people not react on. So strange.

[@Meow_Zedong_1949]

Have you noticed that this "scandal" is taking place with an election on the way. I wonder who benefits from people not focusing on a cost of living crisis and decaying public services and infrastructure. I wonder who'll weaponise this outrage to win the election.

[@FrancisFilmsYT]

Go off king 👏

[@arielayo]

Alfie you speak about the problems in England like I or any other person from a 3rd world country would. Many 1st world countries waste their time getting worked up over the most pointless things known to man. I am from Nigeria, and when I see new stories like these, I watch from afar, giggle and think "oh wow, these people don't know what real life looks like."

[@jennylithgow2993]

It's insane that there are so many people who care about something, so small when there are so many bigger problems within England itself, such as the large number of children living in poverty and the lack of funding for the NHS.

[@johnburrows3385]

Well said my friend.

[@stonegamingstation9425]

Lack of funding for the NHS. Think you will find the NHS is very well funded but terribly ran. Of course Alfie will claim the media created this media storm about this kit but will believe the media about the NHS being underfunded. Bit hypocritical I'd say.

[@falconmclenny7284]

And the invasion from Calais, but of course you wouldn't point out the biggest issue the nation is facing.

[@ronmastrio2798]

It's possible to care about more than one thing you know? The fact you assume people can only think about one thing at a time shows a lot about your mental faculties.

[@falconmclenny7284]

@@ronmastrio2798 then go protest in the streets for Libya, Syria, south Sudan, the DRC, the north Koreans, the uighars.. but you don't, you care about this issue and this issue only, and you support the evil side!!

[@paulmartin3420]

This is the best intro to one of these videos ever. Jb one of the greatest minds of our time, should have said it with a French accent

[@DoctorZomboo]

I love how Farage was spouting off about how untouchable the flag should be; Farage being formerly the leader of the UKIP party whose emblem was a massive purple tinted Union Jack 🤔

[@chrissao_502]

Here in the US, it's not too uncommon where I'm from, south Louisiana, for a high schools' (ages 14-18) student sections to have flags with the logo of the high school in the top left area of the US Flag, where the stars are, and the 13 stripes changed to be the two main colors of the high school. Other than that.

[@chengliu872]

The issue is that the Flag of St. George is simply a generic design with a specific color. If you are to change the colors, what makes it still the Flag of St. George?

[@hishamawartani9213]

The fact that it’s on an England kit

[@rezarfar]

The fact that so many people are mad at a simple colour change when it happened before proves how small minded, xenophobic and racist this nation has become.

[@gabsnandes7818]

It's been like that for a while, Brexit somehow passed

[@ronmastrio2798]

Yeah a simple colour change why don't they just make the cross yellow with a blue background or white with a red background oh wait those are different flags entirely. You get the point and if you don't you're incredibly disingenuous or dense as lead.