Castore kits have more than one problem

Despite its rapid growth in recent seasons, all that glitters is not gold for Castore. The English brand, founded by brothers Thomas and Philip Beahon and sponsored in Italy by Genoa, has had numerous quality issues with the shirts supplied to teams, including torn jerseys, upside-down badges and the absence of major sponsors. A series of violations that certainly do no credit to a company that was founded in 2016 with the intention of revolutionising the technical apparel scene by focusing on quality and customer service. Unlike the big brands that have to service hundreds of clubs around the world, Castore has made it its mission to customise technical gear, closely follow the needs of its customers and produce innovative products.

But unfortunately, perhaps due to very rapid and in some ways unexpected growth, Castore's quality control does not seem to be working as it should, leaving both clubs and fans with sloppy materials and obvious manufacturing defects. The first to complain were Glasgow Rangers fans, who wrote en masse on the online Scottish Fans forum in August 2020 about all the problems that occurred during the first season with the new chest sponsor. Between pre-orders that were never delivered, jerseys without club crests or sponsors, already ruined prints and very poor overall quality, Castore with Rangers was already showing the problems that would mark his technical deliveries in recent times.

At one of the English brand's flagship clubs, Wolverhampton Wanderers, jerseys have repeatedly been torn this season, like Nélson Semedo's, and badges printed upside down, as happened to the Portuguese footballer himself in the second half of the match against Aston Villa. A similarly disturbing image was that of Bayer Leverkusen's badge coming off Piero Hincapié's jersey and hanging by two dangerous seams. The perfect image for a general problem that threatens to undermine everything good Castore has done so far. Nothing frightens fans more than the detachment of their favourite team's crest from the jersey, a metaphor for the English company's lack of interest in the club's colours.

There has never been a lack of mishaps and mistakes with match jerseys, on the contrary, and today, thanks to social media, it is much easier to find every single defect and share it with the world. Castore jerseys are not the only ones to tear, or not the only ones to forget certain logos or imprints. The goodness of a brand's work cannot be measured by a few failed details, but a true fan of football jerseys knows how crucial they are to the success or failure of a jersey. And Castore has lately been failing at the most important task of all, designing jerseys that capture the imagination of fans by representing the history and passion of the club.