In our modern game, different measures are consistently put into place to make football as it should be. For everyone.
Accessibility for all has been a steadily growing movement in the sport we love, and in October, the visually impaired were the latest demographic under the microscope – as eyesight experts developed a new concept shirt. Joining the already bright array of kits in world football, one colour-buff at Vision Direct concocted a dazzling yellow shirt aimed at making players unmissable from the pitch, stands, and on television.
As far as colour goes, the intense yellow is almost reminiscent of those school highlighters from back in the day. Yet, it’s startlingly more vibrant, as the colour is said to have a wavelength of 550 nanometers. This makes it one of the brightest colours on the spectrum.
The pattern and visibility doesn’t end with the primary colour. Vision Direct placed a black snake slithering up the centre of the garment, as well as a half and half black and white collar lining, and zebra-like patterns on both the sleeves and sides of the shirt. Intriguingly, the snake’s involvement in the colour contrasting design signals viewers’ “ancestral psychological mechanisms”. This sub-consciously alerts the brain to danger.
The yellow, white and black design was created by Dr Sherylle Calder in conjunction with Vision Direct and plans quickly extended to a trial team to see just how effective it may be. Calder worked with a host of sportspeople that struggled with eyesight issues over the years. She was even hailed as England’s “secret weapon” when she was part of the 2003 World Cup-winning coaching team.
That’s no surprise, considering the extensive work and research she conducted into visual and cognitive skills and how those can be enhanced with techniques that revolve around visual awareness, eye tracking, decision making, reaction time, scanning, and recognition.
This shirt that holds an eye logo proudly on its chest is an interesting look into perhaps how we take our sight for granted. As their slogan suggests, the #powerofvision really is integral. This shirt certainly won’t be overlooked in a hurry…
