Aston Villa players complain Castore shirts negatively impact performance

[chrisw1]

If the premier league would allow it (and why shouldn't they?) why don't  we change the bloody shirt and invite them to sue us. The publicity could ruin them and I cannot believe our lawyers would have advised us to enter into a contract with no way out in the event of the product not being fit for purpose.

Change them to what?  And then someone would have to start refunding the fans.

The short-term solution is a new set of shirts to be made for the players and it seems that depends on how motivated Castore are to do it.  RW touches on it in the pod above, but at best possibly 6-8 weeks (manufacture of material etc).  To my mind this is a process they should have started in August.

[Brend'Watkins]

If the premier league would allow it (and why shouldn't they?) why don't  we change the bloody shirt and invite them to sue us. The publicity could ruin them and I cannot believe our lawyers would have advised us to enter into a contract with no way out in the event of the product not being fit for purpose.

Change them to what?  And then someone would have to start refunding the fans.

The short-term solution is a new set of shirts to be made for the players and it seems that depends on how motivated Castore are to do it.  RW touches on it in the pod above, but at best possibly 6-8 weeks (manufacture of material etc).  To my mind this is a process they should have started in August.

In the interim it doesn't have to be the exact material just a material that doesn't hold the sweat. A few weeks at most to sort that.

[LeeB]

We can't let these useless twats anywhere near our 150th.

[villadelph]

With Newcastle finding a work-around to opt out of their contract and now this.. Castore must be scrambling to improve their product, this is terrible press. I doubt our lawyers would want to fight a battle on two fronts against the kit maker and the league. Hopefully, they can create some sort of actual "pro" grade kit and keep the players happy in the meantime. However, at the end of the season, pay the fine and get the hell out of dodge.

[paul_e]

Interesting point re the new shirts, apparently the women's team is worried about playing in them, according to a report on the BBC. Obviously soaking wet shirts for women are an even worse proposition than they are for men, for rather obvious reasons.

They wore match day tops when playing in Spain preseason. People concluded it was because of betting sponsorship rules in Spain, but maybe it wasn't.

In light of this and taking a moment to thibnk about I think its pretty clear that this is exactly why they weren't wearing the shirts.

[PeterWithesShin]

Aston Villa women are "dreading" playing on Sunday because of issues with the club's shirts, according to football commentator Jacqui Oatley.

Villa's male players have reportedly told the club the shirts are retaining sweat, making them uncomfortable.

The home claret and blue shirts, made by British sportswear group Castore, are the worst affected and have noticeably changed colour in games.

"This is going to be a big problem," Oatley told BBC Newsbeat.

Aston Villa women are due to wear the kit in their Women's Super League opener against Manchester United on Sunday, which kicks-off at 12:30 BST and is live on BBC Two.

"They've got four TV games coming up. Normally they'd absolutely relish those games and look forward to them," Oatley added.

"But they're actually dreading it because they're really conscious about how they're going to look in this wet, clingy kit - for obvious reasons."

Most of Aston Villa's men's matches so far this season have seen players changing their soaked shirts at half-time.

Oatley said the women's team "absolutely hated" playing in the kit during a pre-season friendly with Chelsea.

"You can imagine, as a female athlete, you have plenty enough to think about just being the best you can be on the football field without thinking about getting sweaty and your kit clinging to you, both from a performance aspect as it is with the men but also from an aesthetic aspect," Oatley said.

"And, as we know, women are different specimens when it comes to our bodies and it can really affect us and how we perform if we're constantly thinking about how we look, or a top might be clinging to our breasts and also our body shapes.

"These are genuine issues for women which you would have thought somebody would have thought through before they released this kit.

"But it seems perhaps that wasn't the case, because they didn't think about it for the men so I'm quite sure they won't have thought about it for the women."

In May 2022, Villa announced they had signed a "landmark multi-year" deal with Castore.

The club are working with Castore to find a solution to the problem after players from the men's team claimed the shirts are weighing them down, according to The Telegraph.

BBC Sport has approached Aston Villa and Castore for comment.

[Small Rodent]

Why would Castore have used a totally different material to the other cubs they manufacture for?

[PeterWithesShin]

And of course on stuff i've seen on social media about the women's team and the shirts there's plenty of "hur hur wet and clingy, i'll watch the games now" type comments, including from our own fans.

[pauliewalnuts]

Anyone who thinks there is any course of action which results in the fans getting refunded must be new to football

[Brend'Watkins]

Why would Castore have used a totally different material to the other cubs they manufacture for?

We don't know if that's the actual case.

And of course on stuff i've seen on social media about the women's team and the shirts there's plenty of "hur hur wet and clingy, i'll watch the games now" type comments, including from our own fans.

They all wear sports bras so they'll be disappointed if they're hoping for clingy shirts.

[Lastfootstamper]

It explains why they were wearing the home matchday claret top in at least one of the preseason games.

[London Villan]

Front page of the BBC site now too. Not great for Castore.

[PeterWithesShin]

Currently 6th most read article on the Beeb.

[AV84]

Why would Castore have used a totally different material to the other cubs they manufacture for?

This is the issue I'd like clarification on first and foremost. Is it a Castore problem, or is it specifically us that got a dud product? I think what the club does about it depends on the answer to that question.

We had Castore last season, didn't we? And the players didn't have this problem. I felt the Newcastle shirts looked very clingy when I had a look specifically for that after we played them. They're also paper thin as seen this past weekend. But I haven't heard any specific complaints about how sweaty they are, or for any of the other teams.

If its a case that we are the only Castore team that has this problem then they are capable of making fit for purpose kits, and should be firing up their machines as we speak to run off an entirely new batch of kits with improved material.

If its a case that all the teams are having the same problem then it's a wider Castore issue and the solution is beyond the knowledge of most of us posting on here.

[Lsvilla]

Why would Castore have used a totally different material to the other cubs they manufacture for?

This is what I don't get. And presumably easily resolved - just knock out a load of players shirts in the material Newcastle etc are using.