Scotland fan frustration as new £90 home shirt launched

Scotland fans say they feel they are being "taken for granted" after the national team's new home shirt went on sale at "eye-watering" prices.

The strip, which marks the 150th anniversary of the first international football match against England, costs £90 for adults and £70 for juniors.

One member of the Tartan Army said the expense of the new shirt was a "step too far" for many supporters.

The Scottish Football Association (SFA) has declined to comment.

BBC Scotland understands the SFA does not set the price of the kits.

North of Scotland Tartan Army chairman, Alan Duncan, told BBC Scotland he followed the national side across Europe and around the world.

"We spend an awful lot following our country as it is," he said. "That's my choice obviously. But we're just constantly being taken for granted.

"I'm not going to generalise it as the SFA, I'd say the SFA commercial department needs to be reconsidering how they treat us."

A discount was available to online shoppers via the JD Sports app. Despite being listed as 15%, it initially brought prices down by 30% - from £90 for an adult strip to £63.

However, the discount was later amended to the correct rate, taking £13.50 off the price of an adult shirt.

Dave McDonald, founder of Scottish football fan site Pie and Bovril, tweeted that the initial discount made the "eye-watering" £90 price more "bearable".

He told BBC Radio Scotland's Drivetime: "When I logged on this morning and saw it was £90 I was horrified."

The previous Scotland jersey, launched in 2022, was priced at £65 for adults and £50 for juniors.

Mr Duncan said: "We're already paying out for five matches this year. For those of us in my part of the country, the north of Scotland, we spend an awful lot just travelling to home games.

"We have to spend a lot of money anyway and asking for another £90 for a shirt ... is just a step too far."

The Tartan Army member expressed concerns about the handling of the kit launch and that fans were being hit with "last-minute" costs.

"It is personal choice and it's personal choice to travel to the games too. It's just the way these things are rolled out. There's no consultation with the actual fans," he said.

Mr Duncan said the deal with JD Sports "doesn't work" and called on the SFA to "rip it up".

"JD Sports can charge what they like because they've got exclusivity," he told BBC Scotland.

The SFA said the new shirt is inspired by the "uniform" worn by the Scotland players in the first international football match against England in Glasgow in 1872.

The badge on the special edition strip is a gold lion rampant, as was the case with early Scotland jerseys. The top also pays tribute to Queen's Park - the Glasgow club which provided many of the national's teams original players - with hooped stripes on the sleeve.

JD Sports has exclusive rights to sell the shirt but it was soon listed as out of stock online on Tuesday morning, as its website page repeatedly crashed.

A spokesperson for the firm said: "We have seen strong demand for the Scotland 150th anniversary kit. We are working hard to ensure as many customers as possible can buy these anniversary shirts in store or online."

The Scotland men's team will wear the shirt for the first time in their Euro 2024 qualifier against Cyprus on Saturday, while the women's team will wear it against Costa Rica on 11 April.