Icons of British sportswear, Admiral Sports – celebrate their 50th Anniversary with an exclusive delve into their rich tapestry of football shirts design, with the help of publisher Halcyon and the agency Glory.
When you think of the brands that exist within the current and glorious space of football shirts, there are the obvious standouts. Nike and adidas continue to dominate, but their path into sportswear, specifically football, does still not tell a story as exciting, daring and in some respects bold, as Admiral Sports.
In 1973 Admiral dared to give football fans what other brands hadn't considered. In an era when football shirts were just about colour and crest, Admiral Sports turned their middle finger up at the bland, homemade scarves and rosette making terraces and identified that fans wanted to more. Fans who could only dream of one day becoming a pro could in fact still wear the same shirt that their hero on the pitch would wear.
What happened next was nothing short of extraordinary, with Admiral Sports paving the way for you see today. Bolder colours, flamboyant repeat brand marks down the sleeve and pioneering materials.
Well, to celebrate the history of Admiral and to mark their 50th anniversary, agency Glory have created a commemorative book that is quite frankly, beautiful!
"With over 110 years of history it is agreat honour to be able to collate many of the most important football shirts since Admiral invented the replica football kit market 50 years ago. These pieces are important parts of both football tradition, culture and design. In Halcyon and Glory, Admiral have found partners that are both experts in the world of football, in addition to being fans of the brand. We are very excited to be releasing the first official Admiral retrospective.”
Theo Hamburger (Head of Marketing, Admiral Sports)
Charting the explosion of football fashion from the late 70's up to the present day, the book blends newly commissioned photography with archive images and sketches. Alongside this the book features views and commentary from England footballing royalty, Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer and many more.
There is also academic insight into the design, manufacturing and pioneering nature of the shirts from Jean Williams and Andrew Groves, alongside social commentary from the likes of Guy Mowbray, James Brown and Maisie Adam.
"Admiral are a cult brand – the England ’82 shirt is still worn with pride on Euro and World Cup terraces today, so it’s an absolute privilege to help celebrate the huge impact the brand has had in pioneering the replica shirt market. From the early Leeds shirt to the stunning William Morris-inspired Walthamstow kit, Admiral keep reinventing themselves – and we couldn’t be more excited to document it.”
Lee Nash (Glory Studio)
Marking the first year of shirt sales, and initial 1,974 individually numbered, hardback books have been beautifully printed, and are available on pre-sale basis, available for football shirt and fashion lovers directly from Admiral. The books are priced at £45 and we can confidently confirm, the book is an absolute stunner, as well as a must have by all football shirt collectors.
Buy it here, at the very least it'll look exceptional on the coffee table.
Long. Live. Admiral.