As many of us already know, football kits can be sold for more than we would expect. With the cost of an authentic Arsenal shirt reaching £100 in 2021 (footy.com), compared to £29.99 in 1993, there is no denying that we are paying more than ever before.
So, as the value of the kits have increased, it is no surprise that plenty of people cling onto their items either with the purpose of reselling them when their worth goes up again, or just to admire the product of their well spent money.
But there is a difference between owning a few of your beloved teams shirts and having a whole collection.
I spoke to George brown, a 21 year old from Wolverhampton, who has been collecting Wolverhampton Wanderers football kits for quite some time now, and has a huge selection to show for it. But what is the purpose of gathering all of these items?
What made you get into kit collecting?
“My first football shirt was bought for me when I was born, but the obsession only really started two or three years ago. I was at a ‘they wore the shirt’ night, which is a book and charity which was set up by a guy called Steve Plant.
We know Steve quite well through being such big fans of the club, and at his second book launch, which was during the season that Nuno took over, there was an auction. In the auction there was a match worn shirt off the player who scored the most recent winning free kick and I just felt the sudden urge to bid on it because it had been such an unbelievable game. All of the proceeds were being donated to Birmingham Children’s Hospital so I thought, why not? From there, the obsession spiralled out of control.”
Do you still have that first shirt you bought?
“It’s up on my wall, yes. I like to see it there. After I got it I put it up on my wall and said ‘well now I have to get every home shirt since I was born.’ Then you end up getting every away shirt, then you get the odd cool 90s shirt, then you get a rare 80s shirt and then you end up saying ‘well I’ve just got to get them all now.’ It just completely spirals out of control.”
How many shirts do you actually have?
“I have every home and away shirt from 1982 and I’ve now started collecting England shirts as well. I have most of the Wolves shirts now and there’s only one or two rare ones that are left, so I would say the obsession is easing down a little. So, I’d say for Wolves shirts I’ve probably got about 85 and probably about 30 England shirts.”
Do you always have to attend and auction to get them?
“No. The match worn shirts are often at charity nights or auctions, but a lot of the shirts I buy are normally from eBay, Facebook or Twitter. But there is a lot of Wolves charity nights that go on where shirts and memorabilia are up for grabs.”
What is the atmosphere like at the charity auctions?
“It is really exciting. But, when you’re bidding on something, it is so easy to get carried away, especially on a night that has involved having a few drinks. The whole atmosphere is great, but I do try not to do them so much anymore as they do tend to sometimes go over the value. This is, obviously, something that I have only learnt as time has gone by - I’m sure when I bid for that very first shirt, I paid obscenely over the real value.”
Do you always go for the same players shirt or does it depend on certain factors?
“I don’t really tend to specify when it comes to players, it is more about how the game was played and if it were a really good match.”
Do you ever resell your shirts?
“To be honest, as long as I’ve got one of the shirts from a match, I don’t mind selling another. But I do buy and sell a lot of the Wolves memorabilia such as the 90s leisure wear, but I don’t really part with the match worn shirts. I know people who make a living out of selling the football shirts, but for me it is just a little bit on the side.”
Do you have any advice for someone who would like to start collecting?
“The best thing you can do before collecting, is to try and find out as much information about the shirts you’re looking for. It is important to know how to tell a fake from an authentic item. This can be hard as people don’t always want to share this information incase people then go and make a load of fakes. But, just do your research and try and get an understanding of the pricing and really importantly, appreciate what people have got and don’t just get jealous. Just enjoy yourself.”
By Arabella Gennard Gardner
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