English team jerseys weave anti-fascism with history

LONDON: Two children in red, yellow and violet shirts ran along the perimeter of one of the oldest football pitches in London, cheering on their team. The pair were too young to understand the historical significance of non-league Clapton CFC’s vibrant attire, but their parents, seated in the stands, their eyes fixed on the game, knew all too well. The east London club, established in 2018, designed the shirt as a tribute to the Second Spanish Republic and the International Brigades of volunteers who fought the Nazi Germany-backed Nationalists in the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s.

As support for right-wing movements has increased across Europe, the shirts have become a symbol of the club’s left-leaning ideals and opposition to fascism, racism, homophobia and misogyny. At the Clapton CFC ground, known as “The Old Spotted Dog”, fans watching their team take on Hutton FC in the Eastern Counties Football League Division One South wore scarves bearing the phrase “Antifascist”. “Wearing this shirt is a way to show respect for them,” one supporter told AFP, referring to those who joined the Spanish Civil War after an attempted military coup against the democratically elected government in 1936. Sukhdev Johal, a spokesperson for the club, said more than 20,000 jerseys had been sold since the shirts were designed in 2018, with 8,000 bought by people living in Spain. “We have sold jerseys in more than 60 countries,” he said, adding that there were also plans to erect a monument at the stadium in honor of the International Brigades. — AFP