Company left ‘gutted’ after pre-releasing 18,000 England World Cup winners shirts

Awkward

A company has been left with egg on their face after pre-releasing 18,000 shirts dedicated to England winning the World Cup. England were beaten by reigning champions France in the quarter finals despite outplaying Didier Deschamps' side at the Al Bayt Stadium. Many genuinely believed that football was going to come home this time and Sorest-based Wholesale Clearance UK were one of those so confident that they released the shirts before the final. The blue and white shirts even featured the words 'it's finally home' on the back. Managing director chose to release the shirts, insisting that there would be "no stopping the English juggernaut". A post on the website said:

"We are so confident that England will win the Cup this time round, we are pre-releasing our unique winners shirts! ""In true never give up English style, we have taken the gamble the boys will bring football home! We can hear it now...The Champions of the World...ENGLAND!"

https://twitter.com/WholesaleClear/status/1601176068370894848?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1601176068370894848%7Ctwgr%5Eba94100b188a2cb1138f61f5a5e4ac1fa10ad7fd%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.itv.com%2Fnews%2F2022-12-13%2Fcompany-gutted-after-pre-releasing-18000-england-world-cup-winner-shirts How awkward... The shirts originally went on sale for £29.99 but have since been reduced to £9.99 - presumably for when it comes home in Euro 2024 and the 2026 World Cup. Andy White, head of sales at Wholesale Clearance UK, explained that they wanted to be the first company to produce winners t shirts and therefore took the gamble. He told ITV News: "We were quite confident England were going to win, but obviously that didn't work out. I genuinely thought we had a massive chance this year and I was gutted when we didn't. At least we can say these shirts are certainly unique and a one-off." Wholesale Clearance UK have now decided to market off the shirts at unisex in tribute to the Lionesses' Euro 2022 win this summer. Related articles:

• Roy Keane's off-air comment about Harry Kane penalty miss was tough but true
• World Cup 2022 Day 21: All the major action and talking points
• Roy Keane cracks up ITV panel with dead-pan Jordan Henderson remark

---