How to buy Mary Earps' England shirt from the World Cup

Nike have finally decided to sell what they have described as a "limited" number of the goalkeeper jerseys worn by England star Mary Earps at the Women’s World Cup.

Earps has become one of the most prominent figures in women’s football over the past couple of years. From her resurgence at club level with Manchester United, to reintegration into the England squad, a key part of the Lionesses’ Euro 2022 success, reigning Best FIFA Women’s Goalkeeper and saving a penalty in the World Cup, the 30-year-old is hot property.

But it is only now that fans will be able to actually wear their own Mary Earps England jersey.

Mary Earps wants to make goalkeeping cool

Earps has been on a personal endeavour to bring goalkeeping, which was previously a heavily criticised part of women’s football, into the spotlight for all the right reasons.

"I really want young kids to view goalkeeping as something they want to get involved in, and that it's cool, it's fun and it's important. Goalscorers are the people you always see on the TV adverts and things like that," Earps told the Telegraph back in February.

She recently revealed that her first taste of goalkeeping came as early her first game at the very start of her football journey. But it wasn’t immediately something that gripped her.

"I was a bit bored, cartwheeling around," Earps admitted. "A penalty comes, I saved the penalty and my dad, goes, 'See, if one of the other girls was in goal, they wouldn't have saved that.' And that was it. That was my moment where I felt like I was where I was supposed to be, diving around in the mud."

Why doesn't Nike already sell Mary Earps jerseys?

This isn't a new problem. Nike didn't sell England Women goalkeeper jerseys at Euro 2022 either.

In July, The Guardian reported: "It is understood that producing the new women’s goalkeeper kits for the public is not part of [Nike's] commercial strategy."

Earps only found out her kit wouldn't be available for the public to buy when no promotional images of the goalkeepers were used in the campaign when the outfield shirt went on sale.

Prior to England's opening game of the World Cup, Earps herself described that as "very hurtful", knowing that other players in the squad were ordering outfield shirts for family and friends.

"It is something I have been fighting behind closed doors," she said. "I have been trying to go through the correct channels as much as possible, which is why I have not spoken on it publicly – even though I have been asked a lot about it over the past few months – because I have been desperately trying to find a solution with the FA and with Nike."

Earps had even offered to personally fund production and was still met with refusal.

It isn’t just England goalkeepers jerseys that weren't being produced for retail. Until now, Nike hasn't produced any replica keeper shirts for its teams at the 2023 World Cup, with Earps the centre of the saga given her vast public profile and willingness to speak out. However, the American firm weren't alone because neither adidas nor Puma did either. Only Castore and Hummel have done.

Nike criticised over initial response

The issue bubbled away throughout the tournament, gaining momentum when Earps was paramount to England's progression through the rounds. When she was presented with the Golden Glove after the final as the best goalkeeper at the tournament, it was impossible to ignore.

But Nike's response didn’t get the reaction they would have hoped for, having only promised to address the problem for future tournaments.

"Nike is committed to women's football and we're excited by the passion around this year's tournament and the incredible win by the Lionesses to make it into the final," a statement read.

"We are proudly offering the best of Nike innovation and services to our federation partners and hundreds of athletes. We hear and understand the desire for a retail version of a goalkeeper jersey and we are working towards solutions for future tournaments, in partnership with FIFA and the federations. The fact that there's a conversation on this topic is testament to the continued passion and energy around the women’s game and we believe that’s encouraging."

Earps wasn't impressed and directly responded on social by media by saying: "Nike, is this your version of an apology / taking accountability / a powerful statement of intent?"

When will Nike starting selling Mary Earps shirts?

Nike has confirmed that England, United States, France and Netherlands goalkeeper shirts will now be available for fans to buy in "limited quantities" in the "coming days". Those jerseys will be sold by each national federation's official online shop, which for England is EnglandStore.com.

Given the public nature of the saga and the confirmed "limited" run, demand is likley to be very high.

"We've seen and share the unprecedented passion and interest in women's football this year and remain committed to playing our part by offering the best products and services to athletes and fans. We invested more in this year's World Cup than any other global tournament to date," a fresh Nike statement explained.

"Nike has secured limited quantities of goalkeeper jerseys for England, US, France, and the Netherlands to be sold through the federation websites over the coming days, and we are also in conversations with our other federation partners.

"We recognise that during the tournament we didn't serve those fans who wished to show their passion and support to the squad's goalkeepers. We are committed to retailing women's goalkeeping jerseys for major tournaments in the future."

Why have Nike done a U-turn?

When considering the popular demand for a Mary Earps shirt, it seems a clear own goal from Nike. For reference, the Manchester United goalkeeper shirt bearing her name produced by adidas was among the biggest women's team sellers on the club's online store in 2022/23.

"Millie [Bright] spoke to me [a while ago] and said: 'My niece is desperate to get your shirt, where can I get it?' I was like: 'You can't, it doesn't exist'," Earps revealed last month.

Huge demand, public pressure and even a petition all appear to have contributed to the decision for Nike to now make the goalkeeper shirts available for buy. The petition on change.org has garnered in excess of 152,000 signatures at the time of writing.

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