Teaching Materials

Football Kit (Answers)

(Q1) Look at the photograph of Blackburn Rovers below (A1). It is one of the first photographs taken of a football team. Make a list of the ways that footballers look different today to those who played over 120 years ago.

Answer: Early football teams played in caps and long trousers tucked into their boots. The student might also mention the fact that moustaches were more popular in 1880 than today.

(Q2) Why do you think someone has written numbers on this photograph? The same numbers also appeared on the back of the photograph.

Answer: The numbers were used to identify the players. For example, number 6 was Fred Hargreaves who went onto to play football for England.

(Q3) Visit this website Blackburn Rovers Football Kits. Describe the ways that the Blackburn Rovers football kit has changed/stayed the same, since 1880.

Answer: Blackburn Rovers have played in blue and white halves from the very beginning. However, the shade of blue has changed. The trousers (they called them knickerbockers) grew shorter over the years. In two seasons (1891-92, 1904-05) they wore dark blue shorts.

(Q4) Look at the photograph of Preston North End below (A2). Then look at the photograph of Blackburn Rovers above. Can you find two ways that football kits changed between 1880 and 1888.

Answer: The main difference is that the players wore shorter knickerbockers. In some cases you can actually see bare legs. The players are also wearing football socks and short boots.

(Q5) Look at the photograph of Newton Heath below (A3). Compare it with the photograph of Preston North End (A2). Can you see the new addition to the player's kit?

Answer: By 1892 players started wearing shinpads.

(Q6) Look at the photograph of West Ham United in 1902. Why are some of the men not wearing football kits?

Answer: The three men wearing suits in the photograph helped to run West Ham United. They trained and picked the team. They also helped raise money for the club.

(Q7) Visit this website West Ham United Football Kits. Describe the ways that the West Ham football kit has changed since 1895.

Answer: West Ham wore several different colours (dark blue, light blue, orange with a black hoop) before the team settled on the famous claret and blue shirts.

(Q8) Look at the photograph of Manchester United below (A5). Why do you think this photograph was taken?

Answer: Manchester United won the Football League championship in the 1907-08 season.

(Q9) Visit this website Manchester United Football Kits. Describe the ways that the Manchester United football kit has changed since 1885.

Answer: Railway workers at he Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (LYR) depot at Newton Heath established a football team.The club's shirts were green and gold halves. These were the colours of the LYR. The team became known as Manchester United in 1902 and they changed their colours to red shirts and white shorts. Between 1922 and 1926 the club wore a white shirt with a red "V". For a sort period in 1934 Manchester United wore red horizontal stripes.

(Q10) Look at all five photographs. This includes both the players and the men who were the managers, trainers and directors of the clubs. How have fashioned changed since 1880?

Answer: A high percentage of men had moustaches during this period. Most men also wore hats.

(Q11) Look at the photograph of Charlie Roberts, the captain of Manchester United, taken in about 1890. Roberts football kit upset the Football Association and in 1904 they passed a new rule about football kit. Why do you think the FA was upset with Roberts.

Answer: Charlie Roberts starting the fashion of wearing very short knickers. In 1904 the FA took action by passing a regulation that stipulated that football knickers covered the knees.

(Q12) Alex James played for Preston North End and Arsenal between 1925 and 1937. Look at the photograph of James taken in 1936. How does his appearance differ from that of Charlie Roberts.

Answer: Charlie Roberts and some other players ignored this regulation and knickerbockers were eventually called shorts. However, many players, including the great Alex James, continued to wear long baggy shorts.