Wednesday 2 April 2014

England’s ‘rubbish’ new football kit unveiled

England’s new all-white home kit and the classic red away kit have been unveiled – and it’s made out of rubbish.

Footballers including Steven Gerrard, Wayne Rooney and Daniel Sturridge will take to the pitch in the World Cup this summer wearing strips made out of recycled plastic bottles.

There is 100% recycled polyester in the shorts, 96% recycled polyester in the shirt and 78% in the socks, the maker Nike revealed.

Although the company has previously made football kits from recycled materials, the new England strip marks the first time a national team’s socks have used recycled sources. Each kit is made using an average of 18 recycled bottles.

Martin Lotti, Nike Football Global Creative Director said: “Incorporating environmental sustainability is a key part of the design and development process for us. Our aim is to create a kit that performs for players and is good to the planet.”

Nike claims to have diverted almost two billion bottles from landfill since 2010 – enough to cover more than 2,800 full-sized football pitches.