After Nike changed the color of the St. George’s Cross on the new England men’s soccer shirt, fans of the team were very upset.
The cross on the shirt used to be red and white, but Nike changed it to black and white. The prime minister spoke out against it, and over 20,000 people have signed a petition to change it back.
Nike changed the red and white stripes to blue and purple stripes. The shoe will be released before the European Championship in Germany, and England star Harry Kane will wear it to show how it looks. Nike called it a “playful update” to the cross and a reference to the uniforms they wore in the 1966 championship game, which was the only big title the men’s soccer team ever won.
Rishi Sunak, the conservative prime minister, didn’t like the new colors and said, “I prefer the original. And my general view is that when it comes to our national flags, we shouldn’t mess with them because they’re a source of pride, identity, and who we are, and they’re perfect as they are.”
Gareth Southgate, the coach of England, agreed with Sunak and said, “What you are really asking is should we be tampering with the cross of St. George?” I think it’s not a cross of St. George if it doesn’t have a red cross on a white background.
Nike and the English Football Association have said they will not change the colors back, even though some people don’t like them. This is not the first time that the Football Association has changed the shape of the cross. They are proud of the traditional cross.
A shirt for an adult costs 125 pounds ($155), and a shirt for a child costs 120 pounds. This makes some people even more shocked.
