Mary Earps replica goalkeeper shirt to be sold by Nike after backlash
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A limited number of replica Mary Earps goalshirts are finally being made available to buy by Nike.
The England women’s team’s home and away kits have been available for fans to buy from Nike since earlier this year, however, Earps’ goalkeeper kits had not been put up for sale.
The manufacturer has faced pressure to stock the replica shirts, with more than 73,000 people signing a petition.
“We’ve seen and share the unprecedented passion and interest in women’s football this year and remain committed to playing our part by offering the best products and services to athletes and fans,” Nike said in a statement.
“We invested more in this year’s WC [World Cup] than any other global tournament to date.
“Nike has secured limited quantities of goalkeeper jerseys for England, US, France, and the Netherlands to be sold through the Federation websites over the coming days, and we are also in conversations with our other Federation partners.
“We recognise that during the tournament we didn’t serve those fans who wished to show their passion and support to the squad’s goalkeepers. We are committed to retailing women’s goalkeeping jerseys for major tournaments in the future.”
Nike has yet to confirm how many shirts will be available or when they’ll be on sale.
Earps spoke out on the controversy earlier this week when Nike issued a statement saying they were “committed to women’s football” despite the fact the shirts weren’t on sale.
“We hear and understand the desire for a retail version of a goalkeeper jersey and we are working towards solutions for future tournaments,” the manufacturer had said.
Earps, 30, responded on Instagram: “@Nike, is this your version of an apology/taking accountability /a powerful statement of intent?”.
Prior to the World Cup, Earps said that the lack of a replica shirt represented a “scary message being sent to goalkeepers worldwide that you are not important”.
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She added: “[Kids] are going to say ‘Mum, dad, can I have a Mary Earps shirt?’ And they’ll say, ‘I can’t, but I can get you an Alessia Russo 23, or a Rachel Daly 9.’
“And so what you are saying is that goalkeeping isn’t important, but you can be a striker if you want.”
Earps played in every minute of England’s World Cup games and heroically saved a penalty in the final against Spain.
She was awarded the goalkeeper of the tournament award, the golden glove.
