A surreal day
Liverpool launched their new kit today, the first of their contract with New Balance, who are the parent company of Warrior, the club’s previous kit suppliers.
How do you launch a kit? It’s pretty simple, you’d think. Put out a few pictures on the club’s website and social media channels, stick it in the online shop and let the punters do the rest with their credit cards.
It seems like that approach is so 2008.
Because if you’re Liverpool you put up a stage on the pitch at Anfield and invite a couple of hundred fans and make it a whole day out. They even played You’ll Never Walk Alone over the speaker system. We’re not sure if the fans held aloft their scarves or not. Maybe they didn’t bring scarves. Do you wear club scarves to what is essentially a live action window display? Who knows.
But that was just the start of the confusion. Those tuning in at the advertised time of 1.45pm hoping to see a picture of the new home kit were instead treated to a stage show hosted by Claire Rourke and the other guy off the Liverpool TV channel. It was a bit like the Eurovision but with marginally less hairspray.
At Anfield for the #LFC kit launch. Awaiting the arrival of Sturridge, Sterling, Skrtel and Mignolet. pic.twitter.com/O7GGN2u14T
— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) April 10, 2015
Then they handed over to some pre-recorded scenes on the big screen where those watching around the world on the live stream!!! got a behind the scenes glimpse at the photo shoot where players modelled the kit (without us actually getting to see the kit – we had to wait for that).
Then there were interviews with players.
Emre Can chipped in his two cents worthÂ
Ringing endorsement on the big screen from Emre Can for the new kit.
'It is tailored perfectly and feels comfortable.' Big relief— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) April 10, 2015
Then they brought out the big guns
Ian Rush and Robbie Fowler are on. Rushie clearly got first pick of the free New Balance gear
— John Gibbons (@johngibbonsblog) April 10, 2015
And then they threw questions open to the floor. Seriously.
They are just interviewing people in the crowd now cos the players aren't here
— John Gibbons (@johngibbonsblog) April 10, 2015
Mel from the Dallas branch asked some sort of question about what it’s like to wear the Liverpool shirt – any Liverpool shirt.
Forgive us for paraphrasing but Fowler said something along the lines that it was great.
Shout out to our very own Mel for asking Fowler a question at the kit reveal! pic.twitter.com/d0pj5RSRIb
— LFC Dallas – OLSC (@LFCDallas) April 10, 2015
 There were other more penetrating questions.
Questions which led to answers which reached deep into the soul of what it’s like to play for Liverpool.
Fowler: If I could still play now, I would. I loved playing for Liverpool.
— This Is Anfield (@thisisanfield) April 10, 2015
Watching this Liverpool kit launch deal. Fowler just said that their fans are the most knowledgeable in the world. Interesting.
— Paul Moore (@ElChiefMoore) April 10, 2015
Most of the questions were for Fowler, however
Three fan questions at the LFC kit launch and all three for Robbie Fowler. Ian Rush is being ignored, poor guy.
— Ryan Keaney (@RyanKeaney) April 10, 2015
By this stage it was all seeming a little bit too much
In years to come they'll pinpoint this Liverpool kit launch as the moment football finally lost the plot
— Evan Fanning (@evanfanning) April 10, 2015
@evanfanning so there’s competition
— Gavin Cooney (@gcooney93) April 10, 2015
But then came the big moment. The moment we got to see the kit
Skrtel, Mignolet, Sterling and Sturridge unveil the first New Balance @LFC Home kit. #HoldNothingBack https://t.co/kctS1HKXZC — NBFootball (@NBFootball) April 10, 2015
Amazingly the kit was red. And they had a new motto. #HoldNothingBack replaces #WeComeNotToPlay
But can we be sure that Liverpool are not coming not to play anymore? That they’re now holding nothing back?
They certainly weren’t holding on to their dignity.
But there was more. Much more. Interviews with the players
Raheem Sterling was heckled by one fan who demanded that he better see the winger in the kit next season, presumably so he can boo him for demanding an obscene amount of money for the privilege of wearing the shirt.
And then there they played games
They've got some kids on now to show off their goal celebrations. Sturridge giving them tips. Feels like filler to be honest
— John Gibbons (@johngibbonsblog) April 10, 2015
And then the players met the fans
https://twitter.com/johngibbonsblog/status/586517932479537152
The first ever @LFC #NBFootball selfie live from Anfield. #HoldNothingBack pic.twitter.com/CdIYZpYmHN
— NBFootball (@NBFootball) April 10, 2015
And that was that.
The Liverpool kit is on sale now. Buy it if you like that kind of thing.
