German Football kit

[cs843432]

My son likes the German football kit due to the colours but I'm trying to encourage some patriotism by offering to buy him a kit for a different country. I've nothing against the country or people obviously but I don't think he understands the tremendous (friendly) football rivalry that exists (or doesn't it exist any more?)

Not at all, just want to encourage supporting of English football rather than the traditional football rivals but maybe the rivalry is isn't a thing any more

I really liked the Germany kit this year too. Let him have it if he wants it!

It's not 1966.

He can support two teams. And no, it's not a thing. It's probably Spain now, as they keep beating us, both in the men's and the women's!

England kit would be my first choice but he also likes other countries like Portugal/Argentina due to the star players

My 14 year old has different country football tops! It’s very popular amongst this age group especially.
He has a German one which he bought very recently whilst visiting Germany! So did 20 of his mates also visiting with him👍🏼

You are being weird and behaving in a slightly less extreme way than the idiots who attacked DH many years ago during the World Cup because he was born in Germany.
By football rivalry do you mean hooliganism?

The issue to me is the ethical supply chain, worth checking. If OK, then no reason not to buy one.

I'd never buy anything from Sports Direct because of the allegations about their Shirebrook warehouse and Mike Ashley being a nasty person in my opinion, for example.

Lol, even royalty can't pull that off...

If my son's generation doesn't see the rivalry then I suppose I don't see the amy in buying him the shirt. I think I would get some stick if I wore one though.

I'd encourage him supporting alternatives to England, loads of Scots wear other national shirts.
Word thing to dictate to your son, allow him his own choices.

The Argentina/England rivalry is about as fierce as the Gemany/England one...

My DS is Scottish, he has club tops for the teams he supports and he has national tops from many countries, including Belgium, Germany, Croatia etc. He doesn't have a Scotland top. He buys tops he likes. It's really no big deal.

Well, he might care if he starts getting stick from his mates about wearing a German football strip.

Then he either learns to take stick or shut them down.

He’s 14, if he can’t take a bit of flack from mates over football team he probably shouldn’t wear any football strip.

My 10 year old has a Belgium shirt from a recent holiday. He also has a few international club kits that he bought from a discount store online because he likes either the team or the colours. We were stopped in London when he was wearing a River Plate shirt, no idea what was said but it appeared friendly. Neither of my DS support the local Premiership team either, eldest is 13 and does joke with his mates about it and has had comments from random people in public but it's never been nasty.

This. If he is shy and wouldn't like anything that draws attention, don't buy it. If he wouldn't mind someone asking why he has it or asking him a question about German football then get it.

I think maybe you don't really understand football kit culture.

Some football fans collect and wear kits from different countries. International rivalries aren't relevant to this. It's purely about how cool/interesting/well-designed the think the kit is.

The only time it's unacceptable for a football fan to wear a foreign kit is if they're actually going to watch an England international game.

One of the most popular vintage kits is the German kit from the 1990 World Cup, by the way!

My ds has had shirts from

Hearts
Celtic
Crystal Palace
Everton
FC Koeln
HSV Hamburg
St Pauli
Barcelona
Spain away kit when it was blue (never got any stick for wearing it)

The Everton shirt was when he was very young, he now supports Liverpool so doesn't like that particular photo coming out :)

No she isn't.

My 14 year old and his mates would think you're being weird.

A bit of team/country loyalty is normal and part of football. Its a ridiculous stretch to go from supporting a team to attacking people.

Sounds like you don’t know what patriotism is.

Regardless, there is nothing wrong with him wearing a Germany shirt.

I was at the final of the Euros. Most German fans at the stadium were there supporting England as were those we encountered before and after the match.
The “rivalry” is all in certain England fans heads.

OK sure right

@Willyoujustbequiet

A bit of team/country loyalty is normal and part of football. Its a ridiculous stretch to go from supporting a team to attacking people.

True but discouraging a child from wearing a particular football kit because its not “patriotic” is a fast way to encouraging xenophobia.

Patriotism is overrated in my view but it’s harmless enough as long as it’s not thinly veiled hostility to another country. This just sounds like they don’t like Germany.

If the kid had actively wanted an England strip and the parents had gone “fine go for it, celebrate your national team,” that to me is harmless patriotism. Saying: “No you can’t have a German strip because we don’t like the Germans/they are always our rivals/The War/they are forrin” tips it over into something less harmless. And a bit nasty.

My boys have German kits, Spanish kits, Saudi Arabian kits, American kits, French kits..... it really doesn't matter. They tend to want the kit if there is a player they admire or if they love the way a certain team plays. It's absolutely fine.

That’s really bonkers OP.

Of course he can like Germany.

German people don’t perceive there to be a football rivalry with England anyway, as Germany is in a higher “tier” of footballing sides anyway. Four world cups and several European cups to their name (NB I’m not remotely German just stating facts)

I can see why he likes the colours - they always remind me of wine gums.

My son has had French and Italian kits in England in the past and my DD goes about in a Sweden shirt.

No one bothers themselves about it.

The only one of those countries we have any heritage from is Italy.