A major barrier to progress towards sustainable sports merchandise is not just what football shirts are made from; it is how fans think about them.
That is the view of Dr Byungdoo Kim, research associate at King’s Business School’s Centre for Sustainable Business, who says the contradiction between caring for the environment and wanting to buy new team shirts during events like World Cup 2o26 is real.
Speaking on the institution’s Office Hours podcast, Dr Kim argued that football supporters often see the shirts as an extension of themselves rather than a product.
“For fans, it’s not just a T-shirt,” he explained.
“It’s community, it’s identity. The shirt isn’t a product in their head. It’s part of who they are. You don’t make a cost-benefit calculation with yourself, with your identity, and that’s exactly why sustainability struggles to enter the equation.”
Discussing the psychology of footfall fandom, Dr Kim noted the emotional intensity involved can override normal purchasing decisions. Famously, he highlighted, Nike’s Nigeria shirt became a fashion must-have ahead of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
“You’re not standing there weighing up the environmental cost,” he added.
“You’re not running a calculation about microplastics or polyester, or whether it ends up in a landfill. When something is disappearing that fast, there is a feeling that you have to get it. It’s all about urgency. Otherwise, you’re going to miss the opportunity.”
The comments come as the men’s World Cup 2026 got under way, with one of the three host nations, Mexico, defeating South Africa 2-0 in the opening match.
The podcast also comes at a time when sportswear companies are increasingly promoting recycled materials and circular production models. Puma is doing some progressive work in this space, as reported by Green Retail World.
Dr Kim said: “Every big brand says, ‘Okay, we are trying to be sustainable. We are eco-friendly because we are using recycled fibres.’ But recycled does not mean it’s automatically sustainable.”
Modern football shirts are typically made from polyester, which is a petroleum-based synthetic fibre that does not easily decompose and can be in the environment for decades.
“Polyester can take up to 200 years to break down, which means every kit any club has ever released is still here, in some form, somewhere on the planet.”
Dr Kim added: “The real question is not about what this football shirt is made of. The real question is, do I really need it?”
[image credit: Green Retail World]
