New Kits: Are The Premier League Taking The Shirts Off Our Backs?

I don’t know why, but I really like this time of year.

No, not all the preseason friendlies, and the chance to see all your team's new signings.

I’m more interested in the new shirts they’re wearing, and I’m not sure why. I love seeing all the new kits unveiled and finding out what battle armour your favourite players will be wearing as they go to war for another season.

This year, however, something is different: There are a lot of new shirts out there.

The most striking still has to be the now infamous Newcastle yellow away shirt.

This season, 17 out of the 20 Premier League clubs will be wearing new home shirts, and 18 of them will be sporting new away kits.

The big issue with this is that in the middle of a recession, is it right that football clubs are asking fans to pay for a new kit, in some cases, just one season after the last change?

Chelsea announced last year that they had agreed to a new deal with kit manufacturer Adidas that would see a new home kit be released every season, and at £40 a shirt, that starts to burn a hole in some supporters' pockets. Especially given that Chelsea have three shirts every season, and they have all changed again this season.

Other clubs are following suit with the third kit phenomenon. The four Champions League clubs have done it for a few years now, and others are starting to follow.

This season, six of the seven clubs who are releasing a third shirt have unveiled a new look, and all of those clubs have already released new home kits. The costs are starting to mount for football fans that want to mimic their idols, or just show their colours.

There is an appeal to fans wearing classic older shirts, but despite the romance of showing awareness of your club's history, this doesn’t apply to a shirt from two seasons ago.

Real Madrid are using shirt sales to fund some of their galactico gathering this summer, but that strategy doesn’t’ seem to exist in the Premier League. Most of the bigger clubs revenue comes from broadcasters like Sky and ITV, and this season of course, ESPN.

If this is the case, then why is there the need to constantly leave supporters out of pocket, as they struggle to keep up with "football fashion?"

Of course, you can argue that fans don’t have to fall into the trap and keep buying new shirts, but it's easier said than done.  This is especially true when it comes to families with kids growing up fast, and the amount of football on the TV, showing their heroes decorated in that shirt.

Perhaps the solution is to follow an NFL style approach of never really changing the overall appearance of match-wear, just subtle changes as technology evolves.

It would mean an end to parents worrying about disappointing their children, fans spending too much money on shirts, and any of us have to worry about looking at that yellow Newcastle shirt again.

Give me your thoughts on the issue, or does it even need addressing?

All input is appreciated.