Man City new home shirt breaks sales record

Manchester City enjoyed their best ever kit launch as the new home strip saw record sales on the opening day.

The highly-anticipated home shirt for the 2022/23 season designed by Puma was officially released on Thursday morning after weeks and months of speculation. Paying homage to a golden era in City's history, the shirt has the club badge centrally and features a maroon trim to give a retro feel.

There has also been special attention paid to Colin Bell, City's greatest ever player who wore the shirt with aplomb in the 1960s and 1970s. A crown symbol inside the neck of the shirt carries the words 'The King', a nod to Bell's nickname.

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City were hoping that the kit would be a big hit with both those who remember that successful era in the club's history and those who want to know more about it (as well as people who simply like the shirt) and the retail response on the opening day has been the best they have ever enjoyed.

Given the focus on a previous team, the club also made it possible for fans buying the shirt to get the names of three of the most talented stars from that era printed on the back: Bell, Mike Summerbee and Franny Lee. And when the numbers were totted up at the end of Thursday, Bell was one of the top 10 most requested names including all member of the current squad.

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