England to play in blue
ENGLAND’S footballers will wear blue when they face old foes Germany at Wembley on Friday. The traditional white kit is being ditched for the night to appease Nike, whose Midnight navy shirt has only been worn twice by the national side. An FA spokesman said: ‘This will give England a chance to showcase their away kit before returning to traditional white colours for the visit of Brazil on November 14.’ England have not worn an away kit at Wembley since Egypt’s visit in 2010.
ENGLAND will break with tradition and play in their dark blue away kit despite being at home against Germany at Wembley on Friday.
The decision has been taken for commercial reasons because colour clashes with recent away opponents — France, Scotland and Lithuania — mean the blue change strip has been worn far less than expected, and the FA want to be fair to fans who have purchased the replica shirt.
It also demonstrates the considerable influence of Nike, who renewed their kit deal with the FA last season until 2030 — a 12-year extension worth more than £400million — despite the Euro 2016 and World Cup debacles under Roy Hodgson.
England previously wore their away strip at Wembley in 2000 — the final match of Kevin Keegan’s ignominious reign — when the red-shirted home side lost 1-0 to Germany. ENGLAND and Wales wanted yesterday’s rugby scrum and lineout sessions between their packs to take place in private at Clifton College, without any media presence. Yet a sizeable number of the boarding school’s register seemed to be watching and a Bristol fan filmed an opening scrum, which was posted on social media within minutes. An RFU spokeswoman said: ‘We asked that none of the Clifton pupils took pictures and the Bristol supporter was filming through the fence.’ THE FA have received praise from the highest football level after England’s success at junior level. FIFA president Gianni Infantino and UEFA counterpart Aleksander Ceferin have written to FA chairman Greg Clarke congratulating him on victories at two World Cups and a European Championship. The letters can only help beleaguered FA technical director Dan Ashworth and the stature of St George’s Park, where all the teams are based. The Under 17s will parade their World Cup around Wembley at half-time during Friday’s game against Germany.