KETTERING IS THE LETTERING

Our U12s are sponsored by ChatterBox, a company owned by a parent, so thank you very much Lisa for saving our players' families a number of £s each season. Our kids look very smart and are proud of their colours.

If you were to consider the amount of sponsors used to kit out Premier League teams, it would add up to £100m (probably more). The majority of £s going inevitably to Man Utd, Chelsea, Spurs, City and Liverpool.
Foreign teams are adorned with sponsors' names on all parts of their kit, but in England there are conservative rules, as Derek Dougan found out when he cleverly took the first step to advertise on his team shirts on the 24th January 1976 at Kettering Town, a club in need of financial support.

Dougan, after retiring from playing, was the chief executive at Kettering Town, then in the Southern League. Against Bath City, his club turned out with KETTERING TYRES emblazened across their shirts. The FA was not amused and demanded that the logo was removed, otherwise there would be a £1000 fine. There was a reference made by the FA officials to the ruling in 1974 over advertising. Dougan said there was nothing official in writing, so carried on. Clearly the FA was concerned over the issue with the BBC TV, a company which didn't advertise. Dougan referred to the hypocrisy of the FA's England team wearing Admiral on their tracksuits and other kit.

Dougan played a trick and changed the logo to "KETTERING T", obviously meaning Town! The FA was not amused. Eventually he had to remove the lettering, as the £1000 fine hung over the club.

One thing led to another in other circles and in June 1977 Derby and Bolton joined in the shirt advertising fun, so the FA insisted on limited sized logos, not to be obvious on the TV cameras. The ruling changed in 1983 when eventually televised games allowed advertising.

Derby County FC was sponsored by Saab, but we are not sure if they drove on Kettering Tyres!

Kettering became the first club to have the club initials on their floodlights. They now ground share and have returned to play in the Southern League. Four famous footballers associated with the "Poppies" include Tommy Lawton, Ron Atkinson, Derek Dougan and Paul Gascoigne (manager for 39 days)

This website has a very thorough "History of Kits", including the Boys of Charterhouse School in 1863. http://www.historicalkits.co.uk/Articles/History.htm

ps the scholar with the ball (BF Hartshorne, the captain) attended the first FA Meeting in 1863 when the laws were made legal!