Does England’s controversial Euro 2024 kit eat into our heritage with a ‘woke’ agenda? Or are people getting worked up over nothing? YOUR COMMENTS after Nike and the FA altered St George’s Cross

England’s Euro 2024 kit has become a cultural flashpoint in recent days because Nike decided to add some colors to the St George’s Cross – and now Mail Online readers have had their say.

This little symbol on the neck, now with navy blue, light blue and purple instead of just red, has provoked outrage and fear that our national heritage is being desecrated – as well as some support.

Furious fans blasted Nike for being “woke” and Sir Keir Starmer has urged them to “rethink” the design of the kit, which costs up to £125.

Mail Sport columnist Simon Jordan branded it ‘pointless’ and ‘virtue signalling’, while Chris Sutton branded it ‘a ‘load of b******s”’ on the It’s All Kicking Off podcast.

Nike doubled down on their design, justifying it as a ‘playful update’ that ‘appears on the collar to unite and inspire’ and ‘disrupts history’ dating back to the 1966 World Cup training kit.

But what do Mail Sports readers think? Well, for one, we can reveal that out of more than 15,000 voters in our poll, 95 percent were not happy about the change.

Your browser does not support iframes.

Many feel the change detracts from a sense of national pride and subtly attempts to politicize the flag with LGBTQ+ colors or a ‘woke’ agenda.

‘England’s national flag, St. George’s Cross, should not be manipulated by Nike and sanctioned by our national football team on our England kit. Seriously, why are we eroding everything “English”?’ wrote a user on X, formerly Twitter.

“How in the name of sanity does this honor the 1966 team. Wouldn’t wear if it was free then woke up and broke,” said another.

‘The cross now looks like an LGBTQ symbol,’ wrote one.

Sources told the Daily Telegraph there was no connection between the new flag colors and the rainbow armband Harry Kane was banned by FIFA from wearing in support of LGBTQ+ people at the Qatar World Cup last year.

‘It makes you wonder how many real English people are on the FA board because they thought it was a good idea to change the iconic St George cross. It would also be interesting to know who signed it and how many on the board agreed with it,’ one began.

“Probably another WOKEROONY decision that has eaten into our heritage under the all-encompassing ‘inclusivity'”

Another issued a defiant statement. ‘You don’t mess around with a country’s flag. The end of.’

‘So basically the England shirt doesn’t have the England flag on it. What other country in the world doesn’t have their flag on their team’s jersey? Once again, St. George’s flag in England dismissed as irrelevant,” one commented.

For the sake of accuracy, not all nations have a flag on their shirt, even if it is in these colors. Spain’s jersey, for example, has no flag, but it does have the country’s coat of arms.

Others weren’t particularly bothered by the potential political aspects and simply didn’t like the kit – or its gigantic price tag.

Focusing on the design aspects, one commenter wrote: ‘How uninspiring is the new kit, dull and unimaginative; send it back to Nike and tell them to try again!’

Another said: ‘I’m most shocked that anyone would pay £125 for a football shirt.’

“I don’t like these companies that keep ‘disrupting history,'” wrote another.

At the other end of the scale, there were some commentators who embraced the update as something inclusive.

‘A new ‘pride’ roof at St. George’s Cross, showing pride solidarity. England fans should adopt this on their flag,’ wrote one.

‘I think it looks great!’ said another.

Someone wanted to see even more radical change. ‘I would like to see a rainbow cross to represent our modern diverse society.’

And then there were the blase bunch who simply couldn’t fathom why on earth anyone would get so confused or emotional over a strip of fabric.

One said: ‘Storm in a teacup. There are far more important things in your life than this triviality. So calm down before you have a heart attack.’

‘I don’t really like the execution of it, but the idea was cool. I’m not sure how people have managed to get so upset and offended by it, but it seems a strange thing to be so concerned about,’ wrote another.

And one said: ‘Having flags on sets is quite a new thing. I haven’t checked to see which nations don’t have it on their kits, but it’s a pretty safe bet that it’s more than you think. Look back at ALL the classic sets – no flags.

‘It doesn’t make much sense as the set is the very symbol that represents the nation – it has the three lions that represent the crown. The flag is just that – a flag to be flown – and it is flown on a flagpole. It does not have to be represented as a picture of everything.’