When Sheffield United hope to unveil new shirts after online ‘leak’ set tongues wagging

Sheffield United remain confident of being able to unveil their new shirts for their Premier League campaign next month, after an online ‘leak’ of the new kit set tongues wagging amongst supporters.

The Blades’ kits, leisure and training wear will once again be produced by Italian firm Errea, with a significant improvement in quality expected after the teething problems that dogged the first season of their partnership. Fans reported issues with stitching and the problems also extended to the kits worn by the players, with the Blades badges on the jerseys worn by Iliman Ndiaye and Anel Ahmedhodzic falling off in the middle of games. The Errea promotion kit, produced in a limited quantity of 620 and now being produced by counterfeit sellers in the Far East, featured much more robust-looking stitching to the Blades badge.

United’s release of their 2022/23 kit was delayed by the doomed Henry Mauriss takeover attempt, which saw key decisions put on hold until the 11th hour. The Blades planned to release this season’s offerings in July, depending on any negotiations with new sponsors. Existing partners Randox, dogged by controversy linked to the Covid-19 pandemic and the government contracts for testing they subsequently procured, have first refusal to continue their sponsorship in the Premier League but at an inflated price.

As The Star has previously reported, United will not entertain the idea of a gambling partner on their shirts whilst owner Prince Abdullah is in charge. United will also be able to sell sponsorship space on their shirt sleeves in the Premier League, where logos on the back of jerseys are not permitted.

Tongues were sent wagging online when an image emerged of a counterfeit Blades shirt in Turkey, purporting to be the new 2023/24 season shirt. The Star understands that the design, featuring grey stripes inside the white sections of the shirt, is wide of the mark, and was created based on a concept kit posted on Instagram by CyKit Designs back in April.

The design did create a talking point amongst supporters, however, with the new kit understood to have features reminiscent of a popular Blades shirt of the past. United have re-released a number of designs as part of their retro range, including the 1981-82 away shirt and the ever-popular 1996/97 jersey that replaced the polarising ‘diamonds’ pattern of the previous season.

The new season’s equipment, designed by United’s in-house team alongside a dedicated designer from Errea, has been developed with input from United’s coaching staff while a range of shirts in long-sleeved option is expected to be made available, after being made popular by Iliman Ndiaye and Ollie Norwood on the pitch.