Nigeria is the most Stylish Team at the World Cup
First the amazing shirts, now these outfits... The Nigerian team are only
just getting on the plane to Russia but they’re already winning.
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Nigeria had heads turning again for the team's outfits as
they arrived in style ahead of the tournament in Russia.
Fans are
talking about their stunning white and green ensemble set off with a matching
hat, worn at a jaunty angle.
The
Super Eagles, as the team is known, arrived looking crisp in starched white
traditional attire, known locally as the kaftan.
The
knee-length white shirt was embroidered with a green eagle representing the
country's green, white, green colors.
Social
media was quick to react after the National Football Federation shared the
images online.
There
was so much chatter online that Twitter dedicated a 'moment' to it.
Twitter
user Kirekaboy wrote: "Has anybody seen how the Nigerian team was dressed
as they landed in Russia?...I have never seen a people so proud of their
culture." While another wrote: "Nigeria's World Cup squad rocking
that slick cricket umpire meets confident gospel choir singer look. Just give
these guys the trophy now."
There's
no denying the love for the Nigerian players' outfits as they prepare for the
start of the World Cup tournament on June 14.
Nigeria's
Nike-designed kit was voted the best of the World Cup in several polls,
including UK broadcaster Sky.
International
men's magazine GQ also voted the Super Eagles strip top the best of all the 32
teams in Russia.
The
highly-sought after kit received three million pre-orders before it's release,
according to Nigerian Football Federation.
'Nigerian swagger'
Design
director Peter Hopkins told Fader magazine that the Nigerian team's confidence
inspired him in his designs for the kit which has a bold neon green pattern
that echoes the pattern of eagle wing feathers.
He said:
"There's a confidence in all these young players, they're going to go for
it and we were attracted to that." "We've been following them from
afar, and the players on social media...a lot of them are playing in some of
the top clubs in Europe, and there's that boldness that aligns in Nigeria and
Lagos and in London.
"We thought that there's something in here to do
something different," Hopkins added.
The kit
has also been the subject of intense discussions in Nigeria where some people
thought the football federation had missed an opportunity to boost local
manufacturing.
Just
imagine if those 3 million Nigerian Super Eagles jerseys were made by a firm in
Aba rather than @Nike. Aba tailors have the capacity to produce them. We just
lost an opportunity to infuse at least $100 million into the Nigerian economy
and provide jobs for our youths.
One
prominent politician said outsourcing the kits to be produced outside the
country contradicted the Nigerian government's plans to expand and encourage
production of 'Made in Nigeria' goods.
Senator
Ben Bruce said the country could have made $100 million if the kit was made in
Nigerian factories.
The
lawmaker said, "Just imagine if those 3 million Nigerian Super Eagles
jerseys were made by a firm in Aba (a Nigerian state famed for local manufacturing)
rather than Nike. Aba tailors have the capacity to produce them.
"We
just lost an opportunity to infuse at least $100 million into the Nigerian
economy and provide jobs for our youths," he said.
Made by Nigeria for Nigerians
However,
some enterprising young Nigerians have seized the initiative and are looking to
cash in on the vacuum created by the sold out official Nike jerseys.
One
example is the 'Unity Collection," created by Chekwas Okafor, founder of
e-commerce site OnChek in collaboration with designer Adebayo Oke-Lawal of
Orange Culture and footwear designer Shem Paronelli.
The
designers said they wanted to pay homage to the Super Eagles with their version
of the jersey.
Okafor
told CNN he conceived the idea to make jerseys for the national team back in
2014 when he noticed that Nigerian creatives were not active in the sports
industry.
"My
goal was to show that we can leverage our creative industry to make products
like jerseys. We only stocks brands on our site that make their products in
Africa. I also want to show that we could make similar products in Nigeria, in
large scale," he says.
The
Unity kit is more than a jersey, it is also a medium to tell the Nigerian
story, he adds.
"The Unity collection is made up of many parts, it tells a story of differences, cultures,
traditions, and dialects. It's a story about the one thing that brings us
together. A story about unity: The story of Nigeria."
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