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What is allowed on a kit

fand444

fand444

New Member
Level 2W Referee
Hi. Is anyone able to let me know if this kit design is legal according to the FA rules. It will be entered into a sunday league.

There will be a sponsor on the front along with the flag on the arm and the statement on the back of the shirt at the bottom
 

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The FA Handbook 2024-25

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Kit regs are in the FA handbook.

Given the political sensitivity of the Palestinian flag I'm not sure if the kit will be allowed. Edit just noticed the slogan. That's not allowed in law. "Equipment must not have any political, religious or personal slogans, statements or images."

Please seek guidance from your local FA.

N.B to all, this is not the forum to discuss current events in the world. Keep any posts to kit regs/laws of the game, please.
 
I’d be amazed if that is allowed. Far too sensitive and political, which actually breaches the laws as @JamesL said in addition to just kit regs. Something I heard someone say about kits once which made a lot of sense was simply that politics and football don’t mix, so keep the kits plain. I have to say I agree with them on that.
 
FA kit regulations are here https://www.thefa.com/-/media/files...-updated/kit-and-advertising-regulations.ashx

I would be surprised if the Palestinian flag on the sleeves was rejected. The FA regs say 'A single image of the national flag of the country to which the Club is affiliated may appear as one single area on each sleeve of the playing shirt provided that the rules of the Affiliated Associations and the Competition so permit and that it does not exceed an area of 25 square centimetres.' The UK does not currently recognise Palestine as a state but has commitments to do so depending on the circumstances, and the UN describes Palestine as a state ('non-member observer state'). Also highly significant is that Palestine is a member of FIFA.

However the kit badge in the photo superimposes a territorial extent in front of the flag and I would expect that to be rejected as being a political image. I would also expect the slogan on the back of the kit to be rejected.

The shirt might also be considered 'very dark' in colour and be rejected as potentially clashing with referees' black kits.
 
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Might I suggest that asking the league/FA before you get the kits made is a sensible approach as well.
 
CaptainsPlease said:
The FA regs say 'A single image of the national flag of the country to which the Club is affiliated may appear as one single area on each sleeve of the playing shirt
Click to expand...
Getting into the political realms a bit but I don't think UK recognises Palestine as a country so this provision may not apply.
 
You've all been super helpful. Hopefully there is no issue with the club badge and the palestine flag on the arm probably will cause a riff but it should be legal.

Is a second sponsor allowed on the shirt. There will be a sponsor on the front. Can i have a 2nd sponsor on the back which would state Bank of Palestine. ALSO would it be possible to have www.freepalestine.com on the bottom of the shirt???! That Could be claimed as a sponsor opposed to political speech. I would argue its a humanitarian issue
 
CaptainsPlease said:
FA kit regulations are here https://www.thefa.com/-/media/files...-updated/kit-and-advertising-regulations.ashx

I would be surprised if the Palestinian flag on the sleeves was rejected. The FA regs say 'A single image of the national flag of the country to which the Club is affiliated may appear as one single area on each sleeve of the playing shirt provided that the rules of the Affiliated Associations and the Competition so permit and that it does not exceed an area of 25 square centimetres.' The UK does not currently recognise Palestine as a state but has commitments to do so depending on the circumstances, and the UN describes Palestine as a state ('non-member observer state'). Also highly significant is that Palestine is a member of FIFA.

However the kit badge in the photo superimposes a territorial extent in front of the flag and I would expect that to be rejected as being a political image. I would also expect the slogan on the back of the kit to be rejected.

The shirt might also be considered 'very dark' in colour and be rejected as potentially clashing with referees' black kits.
Click to expand...
Why wont the Palestine flag get rejected?
Palestine isn't a recognised country and I assume the club is British based and the county affiliation will be somewhere in the UK
 
Purron4 said:
Why wont the Palestine flag get rejected?
Palestine isn't a recognised country and I assume the club is British based and the county affiliation will be somewhere in the UK
Click to expand...
one said:
Getting into the political realms a bit but I don't think UK recognises Palestine as a country so this provision may not apply.
Click to expand...

Palestine is a FIFA member therefore is recognised as a nation in football.
 
fand444 said:
You've all been super helpful. Hopefully there is no issue with the club badge and the palestine flag on the arm probably will cause a riff but it should be legal.

Is a second sponsor allowed on the shirt. There will be a sponsor on the front. Can i have a 2nd sponsor on the back which would state Bank of Palestine. ALSO would it be possible to have www.freepalestine.com on the bottom of the shirt???! That Could be claimed as a sponsor opposed to political speech. I would argue its a humanitarian issue
Click to expand...
Please read the kit regulations as linked above and contact your County FA for further advice. You can't have multiple sponsors on each face of a shirt. And there is a blanket ban on any political messaging and that would almost certainly include any derivative of that slogan or it being included in a web link.
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fand444 said:
Hi. Is anyone able to let me know if this kit design is legal according to the FA rules. It will be entered into a sunday league.

There will be a sponsor on the front along with the flag on the arm and the statement on the back of the shirt at the bottom
Click to expand...
Just play/referee football and confine your political views/opinions to your social media accounts ...
 
fand444 said:
Hi. Is anyone able to let me know if this kit design is legal according to the FA rules. It will be entered into a sunday league.

There will be a sponsor on the front along with the flag on the arm and the statement on the back of the shirt at the bottom
Click to expand...
I'd allow 'the' game to take place. However, the first sniff of a problem and the game is abandoned
Either way, I'm reporting the kit to the League and FA after the game as it's not acceptable under Law 4.5
Don't presume to know my views on Israel / Palestine however. That's entirely irrelevant
 
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