Lyle & Scott launches grassroots football initiative to offer free kits

Premium British lifestyle brand Lyle & Scott has launched a new global initiative supporting grassroots football, offering bespoke football kits to amateur teams and small clubs for free.

The ‘Kits for Clubs’ initiative marks a seven-figure investment from the brand and pays tribute to Lyle & Scott’s historical connections to football by giving away new kits to tens of thousands of grassroots football players all over the world.

Any football club, whether 5, 7 or 11-a-side, freestylers, pub teams or mid-week footballers can apply for new football kits using a simple application process via Lyle & Scott’s website. An expert panel will review all applications individually before deciding which teams will receive the free Lyle & Scott football kits.

The free kits are designed in-house, and teams will be able to choose their favourite from a range of shirts designed, including an Argyle pattern, a thistle-inspired design, or more classic designs for the football purists, as well as the Lyle & Scott team colours of black, gold, and white.

All the kits will be hand-finished in Scotland, in the brand’s hometown of Hawick, with customisation for individual player numbers and club crests. Newly formed teams that do not have a club crest, Lyle & Scott will collaborate with the club to help develop their own identity.

Commenting on the launch of Kits for Clubs, Ben Gunn, brand and marketing director at Lyle & Scott, said in a statement: “I am so proud of this initiative, and I know first-hand how tough funding and support at grassroots is. Football is a common language the world shares and is an important part of Lyle & Scott’s 149 years of history. From the terraces to the pitch, Lyle & Scott’s Golden Eagle is recognised the world over.

“Our new ‘Kits for Clubs’ initiative will take some of the financial barriers away from grassroots football by offering to supply free football kits to amateur teams globally. Football shirts are a powerful thing and being fortunate enough to play and enjoy watching football throughout my life I associate important life lessons and memories with different football kits.”