New Celtic Kit Minus Sponsor

Last updated : 06 September 2004 By Kevin Smith
Today I popped into the Celtic Shop in Sauchiehall Street, to order the new Celtic home kit, due out on Thursday.

Before I go on, I should add that I am not happy about the new Celtic kit. If Umbro do not get given the new kit manufacturer's contract in June, and Celtic then move to a new kit maker, they will bring in three new Celtic strips in the summer. A year later, the sponsorship deal, currently with Carling, is up for grabs, and if Carling pull out of that one, or are outbidded by someone else, the three new strips we all bought the previous summer will br out of date.

Umbro are clearly taking the fans for a ride with the new home kit, and I believe they are trying to cash in on us before they are replaced for next season. However, once again, the Celtic fans' loyalty to buying merchandise has worked against us. Hands up, I just wanted the new top.

I feel the new strip has been badly manufactured - especially the Carling logo. It looks like a big black sticker and if it is anything like the Rangers kits' quality, they are likely to fall off in the washing machine.

I believe the Celtic strip should not be ruined by any sponsors' logos going across the Hoops. The Hoops of Celtic are sacred and anything which is placed on top of them, other than a Celtic crest, is a mess. Obviously, I know that we could not survive without sponsorship deals but I would love to see Celtic take the same stance as Barcelona and not allow anything near their sacred strip.

I chanced my arm today and asked if I could possibly buy the new Celtic strip without the Carling logo on it. The helpful sales assistant enquired to her boss about this, and sure enough, the kits without the Carling logo will be available on Thursday.

The Celtic Shop realise that some people do not condone advertising of alcohol on the strips, and have been thoughtful enough to produce strips without the Carling logo. This is not my own personal reasoning for not buying the sponsored shirt, but it's thoughful all the same.

I'll hope to see a few more 'just Hoops' tops this season.