The most controversial football shirt ever which was banned mid way through a season
One of the most eagerly-anticipated announcements for football fans during the summer is the unveiling of their clubs’ new kits ahead of the forthcoming season.
The much-anticipated reveal can be a cause for celebration or one for unmitigated sorrow when the new design does not live up to expectations.
If you’re feeling a bit disappointed with your team’s new attire for the new season, then spare a thought for Fiorentina fans ahead of the 1992/93 season.
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Fans of the Florence-based club saw a swastika (yes, you read that correctly) included in the design of the club’s away shirt that campaign.
It was eventually banned halfway through the campaign following the discovery, and many of the shirts were destroyed.
However, some survived and one made its way to the UK, where it resides with sports memorabilia specialist Tim Beddow.
“I can understand why people would be suspicious,” he told Birmingham Live.
“In Italy there are certain teams that are quite right wing and certain teams that are left wing.
“It’s an exciting find – and the one I have is definitely a ‘player-worn’ shirt, not a replica. The giveaway is that it has a professional, hand-pressed, machine-stitched badge. On the replicas, the badge is picked-out within the material.”
Italian football was immensely popular in the UK during the 1990s, with Channel 4’s Football Italia show providing highlights of the league which was widely regarded as the best in Europe at the time.
The programme reportedly received numerous complaints from disgruntled British viewers after spotting the emblem, which Fiorentina claimed at the time that the 'optical effect is purely a matter of chance'.
Fiorentina’s form slumped after changing their away kit and succumbed to Serie B (the second tier of Italian football) at the end of that season.
Beddow acquired the shirt after Aston Villa played Fiorentina in a pre-season friendly 30 years ago, and now wants to sell the rare football top.
“The shirt I have was not actually worn during the match," he added.
“It was swapped after the game and brought back to Birmingham. I’d love to know which player wore the number four – I’ve trawled the internet and drawn a blank.
“It’s a highly collectable item, but, like anything else, it’s worth what someone is prepared to pay for it.”
James Hilsum