by Matt DeLaere, Marketing
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| [Image from http://www.chicagotribune.com] |
This past Sunday Northwestern University staked its claim in the sublimated sports uniform landscape. The Chicago-area university teamed with Under Armour® to produce a special new uniform for its men’s basketball team. The twist? The players helped design the new kit.
The gray jerseys feature the words, “By the Player” in place of player names. Also on the jersey, and much more prominently on the shorts, are sublimated phrases and hand-drawn icons of things that are important to the players. Included are a depiction of Chicago’s John Hancock Center, headphones, a barbeque grill, a heart-shaped basketball, and phrases like “pound the rock,” “love the game” (coach Chris Collins’ motto), and “Eh! Eh! Eh!” which the players chant before heading out on the court.
Alternate uniforms are all the rage, with sublimated designs becoming increasingly popular. While custom sublimated uniforms might be well off into the future for adult and little league teams, sublimated designs and patterns (like tie-dye) are already here. When applying names and numbers to these brightly-colored (and often polyester) uniforms, remember that Stahls’ Thermo-FILM® heat transfer material has a special low-bleed formula which resists dye migration. Plus, it’s available in pre-cut letters and numbers, making your job that much easier.
After all, a team may stand out with sublimated uniforms, but players still want to stand out on their own with names and numbers that are easy to read.