The Shein Effect? When the Premier League's a Rip Off.

If you've seen the FIFA President justifying World Cup ticket prices this month, you know it's not about football anymore, it's about profit. And it's not just ticket prices anymore, its kit as well. 

Before me sit 3 eyelet mesh football jerseys. 2 are £60 RRP Liverpool FC jerseys produced by Adidas. And one is a €10 FC Barcelona fake I bought in a Mallorcan market. The fabric's between LFC and FCB are very similar in construction and weight, and both are made out of 100% polyester. 

The expensive Liverpool tops didn't last one wash before the yarns started pulling and breaking. 10 washes in and the fake Barcelona one looks as good as new.

In February of this year Liverpool announced their 2025 revenue was £703 million, and increase of £89 million, with £8 million in profit. Adidas also had a good 2025. An increase of 10% in revenue to €1.377 billion, with operating profit rising a whopping 54% to €2.056 billion. 

But they have to sell you product that isn't fit for purpose. And wouldn't pass the EU ESPR. 

I have known a fair few people in Adidas HQ over the years. And a topic of conversation has come up time and time again. Since Brexit, Adidas will dump their subpar product onto the UK, because that is the best legal option available to them. 

Despite many an angry fan posting about the poor quality online, neither Liverpool FC or Adidas have commented on the poor quality of their products. Despite both local and national press mentioning it. 

When I tried to return the first kit, I was informed that it couldn't possibly be a fabric fault. Instead stinging nettles were to blame. In winter. But Sports Direct don't hire their store managers for their intelligence!

So what went wrong? 

It's likely a multitude of issues, starting with the spinning and ending up in the knitting. Fibres are working against each other, causing tension and resulting in breakages. Which gets worse with every wash (unfortunately my son is a die hard Liverpool fan, so faulty goods are worn). And yes, the issue would have been picked up in testing. If they bothered to test it. 

And yes, both the club and Adidas are saying these kits are eco-friendly because they are made from recycled plastic bottles. Clearly no one mentioned eco-friendly should also mean durable. Not to mention the level of microplastics that are coming off these shirts as they degrade every wash.

While consumer rights are consumer rights no matter the circumstance (and yes, I could have taken it to the Ombudsman, but I have chosen to make it my mission to shame Adidas and Liverpool FC instead. Because their fans are their profits and I have a bee in my bonnet about people being ripped off!). The problem that's not being addressed is what is going to happen to these shirts that are 1) unsold and, 2) not resellable?

This is where it comes down to who has the better negotiator; the football club or the brand. Because no 2 contracts are the same. Some clubs take responsibility for everything. Some, for nothing. One thing is for sure though, having a faulty fabric means that you can incinerate it here in the UK. 

UEFA estimate that 60% of team kits are discarded annually. With 3 - 4 million kits destroyed. 

At those volumes it makes precisely no difference if you are making it out of recycled or virgin polyester, if its' all going into rubbish. And its' environmental footprint is worse than that of the Nike kit. Or even the New Balance kit from 2015, which my son also wears and looks as good as new. Despite the hundreds of washes that's gone through, with him being the 3rd child to have that kit. 

There is no reason that a football kit should not last the season. In fact, consumer law would expect exactly that. Some sports industry people have argued that football clubs are expensive to run. So it's more than reasonable that poor quality kits should be sold at a high price. But with Liverpool FC reporting rising profits against every single money making category, that sounds like bull to me. Especially when one kit has fabric faults before we even took the tag off!

If Liverpool genuinely care about the fans or the environment, there are a couple of actions they need to take. First, they need to go back to Adidas with evidence that their products are not fit for purpose. A refund is due. And that should entitle fans who bought a faulty kit with a discounted 2026/7 kit (we'll brush past the fan's comments on design!). The club still profits off this. 

A take back scheme through LFC for faulty kits needs to be organised, with a donation to the Salvation Army to recycle the fabrics. There's a great marketing story to be had there. 

Liverpool FC should also take this opportunity to review their contract with Adidas. Because supplying faulty goods is going to be a breach, which ever way you swing it. Testing standards should be agreed. 

And as a lovely cherry on the top, they should join the Microfibre Consortium Roadmap. 

But I don't think LFC will do any of this. Because we're already seeing how financial reports take precedent over fans, the sport, or their local area. I would like Adidas to answer how they plan to ensure ESPR is applied across their global products. Because this could well be the first example of a 2 tier product system coming out of large European brands. 

In the meantime, I will continue to take my son's football kits around with me, calling out the club and the brand at every turn. In the hope that other clubs learn from Liverpool's mistake. In September I am giving a keynote at Manchester Fashion Week on polyester. You can bet these are coming with me!

I will continue to expect silence from Adidas and Liverpool FC.