Sunderland supporters attempt to mock Newcastle United kit launch - and fail miserably

It did not take long for Sunderland supporters to poke fun at Newcastle United’s highly-anticipated kit launch.

Adidas will supply the Magpies’ designs from 2024-25 onwards and the iconic sports brand’s return was greeted by hundreds of Toon-daft fans. Geordies queued up in their droves outside St James’ Park before the home shirt was released at 8am this morning.

One supporter camped out from midnight to be the first to buy the shirt - Adidas’ first crack since agreeing a partnership worth around £30million per year. The German retail giant previously supplied Newcastle’s kit between 1995 and 2010 - becoming synonymous with an era known for the Entertainers, Kevin Keegan, Sir Bobby Robson and Alan Shearer.

As expected, a social media frenzy erupted following the launch - with fans raving over the new design. However, not all were impressed, mainly those from the red-and-white half of the region…

Sunderland enjoyed a six-year partnership with Adidas that ended in 2020. The Black Cats ultimately agreed a fresh deal with competitor Nike and will don Hummel from next season.

Sceptical fans suspected skulduggery, accusing Adidas of copying Newcastle’s home shirt from a previous Sunderland design. Both kits have similar-sized stripes with a white background and black numbers.

One post read: “The beauty of marketing is that you can whip up a fan base into such a frenzy they completely glaze over the fact their revolutionary new £80 shirt is essentially a template cut from a rubbish Sunderland League One kit.”

Amid the X-rated responses, a witty Newcastle supporter pointed out how much the club are set to rake in for the Adidas deal. The response read: “The difference is that the yellow sticker on the sleeve pays more than your entire Championship TV rights. Levels.”