Nike released a replica jersey of England goalkeeper Mary Earps on Monday, after facing widespread criticism for not selling the iconic Women’s World Cup finalist’s jersey.
On Instagram story Earps said Monday that she didn’t know the shirts would be on sale, but thanked her followers for their “amazing support.”
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Earps also said the shirts sold out the same day they were released. Nike has not commented on whether the shirt has sold out, or how many products have been sold, but the shirts do not currently appear for sale on its website or through the FA website.
“More will be put up for sale later this season,” the company said in a statement to Reuters.
Earps was one of the standout stars at the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand this year, earning a FIFA Golden Glove award. She won the England Player of the Year award last month.
Nike previously faced backlash from fans and from Earps itself after replicas of the goalkeeper’s jersey were not made available during the competition, which ended on August 20 with Spain’s victory over England.
More than 170,000 people have signed a Change.org petition calling on Nike to sell jerseys for Earps and other goalkeepers.
The men’s England goalkeeper shirt is available to buy on the Nike website.
Nike announced on August 24 that it would make goalkeeper kits for the women’s teams available to fans, telling Reuters that it had “secured limited quantities of goalkeeper shirts for England, the United States, France and the Netherlands for sale through the association’s websites in the coming days.” “.
The company did not comment on why it chose to release the Earps shirt in October.
Nike produced 13 of the team’s 32 jerseys for the Women’s World Cup. England’s kits became an additional source of income after the US team, which they had sponsored since 1995, suffered their first ever exit from the tournament, causing a significant loss in potential earnings.
Sports sponsorship is a major sales driver for apparel manufacturers. Last month, Nike executives told investors that the company exceeded its sell-off plans and saw double-digit growth across the global soccer category in the quarter ended Aug. 31, which included this year’s 2023 tournament.
