True Colours.

One of the problems with many sporting organisations these days is that they have no idea what their product is worth.

This can be a huge issue when it comes to attracting sponsorship, forming partnerships with other organisations and selling or even setting up the broadcast of that particular sport.

In some cases it is in fact beneficial to cherrypick which games are broadcast rather than taking the approach – which many do today – where they make every game available. The thinking is that the more games that are shown the more it will drive new fans, players and sponsors to the sport. Sadly this approach will frequently work against you as today the viewers, and especially those willing to come on board as a sponsor want to see quality rather than quantity.

There are also so many sports today who fail to take the time to understand what they stand for. This is so important. More important than many realise.

You have to understand the history of the sport, the team or the club, and what it has evolved to represent. Not just locally but to the broader sporting community. It is also vital to comprehend what it means to those who have gone before, along with those who follow the sport, the club or the team today. Without taking that time to understand the values and the history you are doomed to fail.

One thing that you need to be very careful with is change. Many teams have opted to change their reserve kit, often purely as a money making exercise. It is certainly not advisable to change your team’s main kit, as this is usually strongly linked with your supporters and that history.

Those old enough to remember cricket before the international players became advertising hoardings will recall the strong pushback by traditionalists in England who were staunchly against having any form of advertising on the England Cricket jumper. It had been mooted that the three lions that sit in the centre of the sweater would be moved to make way for a sponsor’s logo. This was not acceptable to the masses.

In 2015 someone thought it would be okay to relocate the three lions to the left side of the chest as a new sponosrs logo was positioned on the right-hand side.

Over the five days of the Test match against New Zealand there was little if any support for the decision, and the new-look sweater was described as “an abomination”, “a disgrace” and even that it looked like it “was knitted by a drunk grandmother.”

Over the years there have been a number of teams that have opted to change the colours that their side played in.

Famous examples are when Don Revie took over as manager of Leeds United, he made a decision to change the club strip. Revie wanted to create a modern and ambitious image for Leeds United. In homage of the great Real Madrid, Revie adopted their colours for Leeds, and over the subsequent years it proved to be a wise decision.

In 1950 Brazil lost the World Cup at home against Uruguay, in an episode now known as “the Maracanazo.” Three years later in September 1953, the newspaper Correio da Manhã ran a competition calling for proposals for a new kit for the national football team. Up until then Brazil wore white kit with blue collars,

The yellow shirt, the “canarinho,” which was created by a 19-year old called Aldyr Garcia Schlee, was chosen, and it has turned into one of the most iconic football strips in world football. Its premiere was in 1954. Players have brought immense pride to the nation wearing that shirt since, and the men’s national team has won five FIFA World Cups, and seven Copa Americas.

In 1993 The National Federation stated that “The shirt of the Brazilian national team is a symbol of our people’s joy. It’s for cheering, celebrating and loving the country.”

Australia’s Wallabies rugby union side used to play in the blue of New South Wales. They then switched to green shirts in 1929, a move that did not meet with everyone’s approval. There were a number of changes over the next ten years including a shirt that was white with green and gold hoops.

In 1961 for the tour to South Africa, and to avoid a clash with the Springboks green jerseys, Australia abandoned their green jumper and for the first time ever wore gold. Some have said that the change was also made out of respect for the formidable South African side that had gone 50 years without losing a test series.

The Australian’s wore a green shirt again against France, but it was decided that the gold jersey would “give the Australian side a distinct identity.” It then became the recognised Jersey colour for the Wallabies.

There have been slight tweaks to the design of many of these shirts over the years as different kit sponsors have come onboard and want to create something that stands apart.

In recent times we have seen many of the Australian national teams try and incorporate an Aboriginal touch into the design as an acknowledgement of the first nations people of Australia.

On the weekend of the 6th and 7th of March 2020 in their FIH Pro League matches against Argentina, in what was described as a first for Australian hockey, the weekend became a dedicated Indigenous themed weekend. As part of that theme the Hockeyroos and Kookaburras (Australia’s women’s and men’s national hockey teams) wore specially designed Indigenous playing kits.

The artwork on the front of both playing kits was designed and painted by Aboriginal, dual Olympian, gold medallist and former Hockeyroo and Federal Senator Nova Peris OAM. It also included artwork by Indigenous Northern Territory artist Nathan Patterson.

In 2023 as part of Hockey Australia’s ‘Reflect Reconciliation Action Plan’ another Aboriginal themed shirt was designed. Respect was shown for the Aboriginal traditions with the colours being representative of the Aboriginal people, Black, Ochre and Yellow. The artwork this time was created by: Kevin Bynder, and Nova Peris.

Hockey Australia then made the decision to adopt this new design and new colour as the alternate strip for both the Hockeyroos and the Kookaburras. As was to be expected some applauded the move, others felt that this was going too far away from tradition.

Of course very few came out publicly as it would be deemed the wrong way to behave, and possibly even labelled ‘racist’ to have such an opinion. Even though it was in many cases only an opinion.

Hockey Australia employed an accomplished copywriter who advised that “This artwork represents the deep-rooted connection Hockey Australia has with its players, teams, staff, families and communities across Australia. The central Gathering circle represents Hockey Australia, branching out to community and grass roots levels that connect and intertwine for the love of the game, building strong foundations for all who play and are passionate about the sport.”

They then added that “Hockey Australia is built on the values of Leadership, Integrity, Excellence, Inclusion and Community, this is shown through the use of our star stories and Songlines in this artwork. We live under the Warrambul (The Milky Way), we are guided and play under the Southern Cross, connecting us from one side of the country to the other, as does the sport of Hockey.”

Did this sell the strip to those who were against it?

The Kookaburras and Hockeyroos wore these shirts at their respective Hockey World Cups in 2023 and very little was made of change. The Indian media picking up on the fact that there was a change, and reporting what the new design represented. At the Olympic games they could not wear the shirt, as nations must wear their national colours and Australia’s are officially green and gold.

So why suddenly during the recent tour of Europe for the FIH Pro League was there attention brought to the shirt? After all it has been worn now for two years. Most of the comments were extremely negative and tended to refer to that fact that this was moving too far away from what had become the norm, the traditional green and gold.

Was there a need to educate the viewing public more about the shirt and what it represents? Did Hockey Australia underestimate how long this would take to get bedded down as being accepted by one and all?

While we very much doubt that many Australian hockey fans ever read the above copy on what it is supposed to represent, is there the possibility that the disconnect that is there with the Pro League and your average weekend hockey players at large? Or could it be due to Hockey Australia’s perceived loss of connection with many involved in the game that has caused this sudden rejection?

While it is good to see the Aboriginal people and heritage being acknowledged there is clearly a great deal more work that needs to be done in thaty space.

Tony Shaw is the Director of Indegenous Services Australia and has worked with many sporting associations in Australia educating them about Aboriginal beliefs and culture. He has worked previously with the Australian Men’s Hockey team, as well as the AFL Players Association (AFLPA), the Cathy Freeman Foundation and AFL Clubs such as the West Coast Eagles, Fremantle Dockers, Port Adelaide and Collingwood.

So what was his view of the situation?

“A jersey design can be powerful, but only if people understand the meaning behind it. If the story and symbols aren’t being explained properly, especially to overseas audiences, then the message gets lost. Eight Aboriginal players in more than a hundred years tells us the system hasn’t worked. It’s time for more action, more investment, and a genuine effort to make the sport more accessible to our communities,” he said.

It is hard to argue with that, and maybe the issue is that this welcoming and development of Aboriginal players needs to be focussed further down the pyramid. Engage with more children to create opportunities for them, and then we may see more coming through.

The State bodies in numerous sports will tell you that they have an indigenous round every year, but these have frequently been labelled “tokenism,” as what is done to back this up this one weekend? What education systems are in place? Some clubs have gone to great lengths to do this off their own back with little or no financial support, and they are to be applauded, but more needs to be done outside of the clubs.

If, as Mr Shaw stated people do not understand the meaning behind the shirt you are in danger of losing the support of a section of the community you are trying to show you are supporting. The big question is what is the message Hockey Australia is trying to get across by having the teams wear this shirt? Individuals we asked had no idea.

So the question is has changing the shirt affected the values that the team stood or stands for, and are the public identifying with the team the same way?

Rather than having an Aboriginal shirt surely the sport should be more focussed on producing the next Aboriginal in the shirt?

Interestingy, it wasn’t just the shirts that seemed to be upsetting some. On the recent tour of Europe another alteration to the standard playing kit was worn with both of the national teams wearing rainbow socks.”celebrating diversity and inclusion.” This is another decision that rankles with some. As it is the national team, a team representing Australia. Who makes a decision such as this on behalf of the nation, is one argument that was put forward?

As one fan stated, “while I see this as singling out inclusion for one section of the community I do not feel that it represents me. The national team is supposed to represent us all”

So is this just another example of virtue signalling?

What would happen if one player chose not to wear the socks? That would certainly be an interesting scenario.

Hockey has for decades had individuals from the LGBGTQI+ community playing for the national team. This was at a time when little fuss was made as to whether players were gay or not. Now it appears that various sports must promote these players as it maybe helps give the sport some new standing in society.

At the FIFA Women’s World Cup there was actually an article written that listed which teams had the most lesbian players. Was this relevant in terms of the tournament?

When we talk about inclusion it is supposed to refer to the sport or club creating opportunities that previously did not exist as a result of individuals being excluded because of their sexuality. So was this the case in hockey? Was it in many sports? Certainly there are a few where one would think that would sadly still be the case.

The problems arise with such messaging if it comes from a place of inauthenticity and is not backed up with actions. Not only that, but it can devalue your brand and also undermine the history and what the team’s colours stand for.

In most sporting environment’s a player’s sexuality, just as a players religion, or ethnicity have little bearing on what they do on the pitch. All that most people care about is whether they can play.

In many cases it is actually the clubs who need educating when it comes to inclusion and making all players welcome. There are many reasons why players of a certain ethnicity or sexuality opt not to play for a club. The task is finding out those reasons and addressing them

Across many sports there could be a great deal more understanding into the challenges these individuals face. Challenges that are not obvious to many of us, and hopefully education will make their journey within the sport easier. Education is the key.

Rather than putting on a pair of socks, would there not be more benefit in organising tournaments for this section of the community? Get them involved in playing the various sports? Rugby has done this to great effect. Once they are playing the sport and enjoying it, and some show a talent for it, isn’t this going to be a more powerful and genuine gesture, than simply putting on a pair of socks for one game?

Surely these type of actions will speak far more to a section of the community that feels on the outer, and is a better example of genuinely looking to address issues of integration and inclusion?

So sport needs to show its true colours and show that it is genuine about these issues and back them up with action. Whatever the case, one feels that the question will remain, should the national team and the national colours be used for such purposes and who is responsible for making such a call?