The arrival of a new domestic season means new kits for most teams and for some, a new kit manufacturer too. It's also a time to compare and analyse the presence of those manufacturers in the new season compared to the last one. Which kit makers are becoming more popular, which are falling out of favour and which are disappearing altogether?
For those of a curious nature, Kitbliss has run the rule over the top 92 professional clubs of England and Wales, plus the 42 playing in Scotland.
The most prominent kit manufacturer during the 2016-17 season was Puma who provided kit for 16 clubs, and as the 2017-18 season starts, we can see they've increased that number to 17.5. And yes, you read that correctly - the '.5' is there for good reason. One of the new teams that find themselves on Puma's books are AFC WImbledon, but theirs is a special arrangement for the current season.
Some of you will be aware that Admiral were the sole kit providers for AFC Wimbledon in 2016-17, and their home and away kits will be worn again in the current campaign. Alongside those, however, there will be a third kit made by Puma meaning the Kingsmeadow club will have dual suppliers during 2017-18. For the purposes of simplicity, Admiral and Puma are shown as having '.5' of a club each where AFC Wimbledon are concerned.
Only one club has specifically changed manufacturer away from Puma during the summer - Crawley Town, who are now collaborating with Errea - while Notts County have switched to Puma from Carbrini. Football League newcomers Forest Green Rovers continue their Puma kit partnership which started in the 2014-15 season.
The joint-second most prominent kit manufacturer in England and Wales this season is adidas. Like Puma, they've increased their portfolio, gaining Accrington Stanley from Mitre and Watford from Dryworld. The only team switching supplier away from adidas are Chelsea who are now with Nike. Nike start the current season with one fewer club - nine compared to ten in 2016-17 - caused in part by the fact that both teams relegated from League Two last season, Hartlepool United and Leyton Orient, were both on Nike's books.
Errea have leapfrogged Nike into joint-second on the list having made the biggest increase in club partnerships of all the manufacturers. This season they can boast 13 teams across all of the top four divisions, gaining Queens Park Rangers from Dryworld, Walsall from Carbrini, along with Lincoln City who were promoted from the National League, plus the aforementioned Crawley Town.
Puma, adidas and Errea provide kit for nearly half of all the 92 clubs in England and Wales this season, but of the other names gaining ground are Umbro (up from five clubs to seven) and FBT (who now have four teams compared with one - Doncaster Rovers - last season).
At the other end of the scale, four manufacturers have dropped off the list altogether for 2017-18. Between Carbini, Dryworld, JD Sports and Mitre, ten different clubs ended up with new kit suppliers while Sondico lost two of their previous five clubs in the form of Carlisle United and Sheffield Wednesday.
Overall, the number of manufacturers across all four of the top divisions in England and Wales dropped from 25 to 23, and 18 of the 92 clubs switched manufacturer for the 2017-18 season.
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