On the previous Wednesday, Denmark revealed their uniform for the upcoming World Cup in Qatar during the winter season.
Manufactured by Hummel, a Danish company that also supplies kits for Everton and Southampton, the jerseys swiftly captured the interest of the public.
These kits, designed by Hummel, are intended to protest against the nation hosting the World Cup, Qatar, for the reasons outlined in this controversial article. Hummel is typically recognized for its well-known chevron trademark.
The Hummel team and the national team both have their badges camouflaged against the color of the kit, saying that it does not wish to be visible during the tournament, which costs thousands of people their lives.
An all-black third kit “in the colour of mourning” marks the death of migrant workers involved in preparations for the World Cup.
Hummel stated in a press release that backing Qatar as the host country is not equivalent to fully supporting the Danish national team.
The Supreme Committee, responsible for organizing the World Cup, has strongly rejected Hummel’s claim that their genuine commitment to the safety and health of the 30,000 workers who built the World Cup stadiums is “trivializing.” They dispute the assertion and emphasize that the tournament has not cost the lives of thousands of people.
Questions arose immediately. Hummel sent a list of inquiries to Athletic Club, which included whether the company would benefit from selling the shirt and why Hummel had previously partnered with Qatari clubs. Additionally, Hummel wanted to know if the company would be working with other teams with questionable human rights records.
The discussion is taking place here. Prior to the Southampton-Everton match on Saturday, Christian Stadil, the owner of Hummel, extended an invitation to The Athletic for a conversation with him.
Christian, what motivated you to express this statement, and why did you choose this design?
Soccer is primarily focused on the highly anticipated World Cup that we discovered rather quickly. Over the past year and a half, we have extensively deliberated on numerous concepts alongside the Danish Football Association (DFA).
We engaged in a significant amount of LGBT rights activism by proudly displaying a rainbow flag at the stadium in Moscow. This is especially important because there is a lot of activity related to human rights challenges in Russia, which we are well aware of through discussions with Amnesty International. It’s worth noting that this is not just limited to Russia, as there are similar challenges in Qatar.
Qatar is like this. We have a window to communicate, so instead of our logo flying, we wanted to do something a little different, with bright colors from the flag. Not to take away from football, but to make people stop for a few minutes, or even a few seconds, to contemplate the whole process of holding the World Cup in Qatar.
“Will attend will attend, as a member of the DFA (the Danish Football Association), our connection with the national team, none of our executive committee, our CEO won’t attend, I won’t attend. We have also stated that we will not attend that place.”
This shirt carries with it a message.
We don’t wish to be visible during a tournament that has cost thousands of people their lives.
We support the Danish national team all the way, but that isn’t the same as supporting Qatar as a host nation. pic.twitter.com/7bgMgK7WzS
— hummel (@hummel1923) September 28, 2022
We wanted to stress the message behind the logo, which is why all three kits are in black and white and red. However, we still want to be the one who’s behind the message. Moreover, we also said that instead of having our logo making a lot of noise on the pitch, we should remove it, more or less.
The leading Danish newspaper expressed, “Christian, could you have possibly included more elements? Isn’t it a tad monotonous with the simple red and black?” We were pleasantly taken aback by the level of interest it garnered when they contacted me two days ago.
It was strange for me to see it as the owner’s first time. I also saw you playing against France, and I’m a guy in a commercial for Nike, the big swoosh. Then, I couldn’t see our own logo, and that’s the best decision we believe. But, it was meant as a sign, a vision for stopping and pausing for reflection on human rights. That was the idea behind the kit.
Which ideas were not accepted?
Nevertheless, it is possible to fold the sleeve of a jersey. We considered the option of adding a black strap around the arm, resembling a captain’s armband or a band of mourning.
In the end, we didn’t want the fact that FIFA has regulations on political symbols on shirts to hinder us from hosting players, but the DFA wasn’t interested either.
We didn’t want them to be in that situation again, as it’s a very difficult situation. He has explained his decision to put his sleeve up or roll it down to make him a sudden hostage. Maybe he is playing for another team like Eastern Middle or Qatar, in the Premier League. Just imagine a young kid who is only 20 years old.
“However, not an excessively provocative signal, but rather a package that transmitted a signal, and a package for the entire team, so they didn’t need to consider anything, we desired a package that transmitted a signal.”
It’s still a nice little kit — look at the black kit. We were also considering writing messages into the neck of the jersey, taking into account the printed things. We really didn’t want to make the players hostages in terms of what signals they came up with, but it came to us.
Are you going to benefit from the shirt? Hummel is still the manufacturer of the World Cup, but your logo may not be visible.
They are going to help us become a company that can better navigate where to avoid, where to produce, and where to manufacture clothes. Over the past two years, we have developed extensive collaboration with international amnesty, which has enabled us to make a difference in this challenging world. Although you are also a commercial company, when you want to make a difference, it is quite difficult to navigate through this world.
We will donate all profits from collaboration to Amnesty, incorporating their logo into ours by adding a wire barbed design. Additionally, we have created a joint branding kit where they can also take our logo, bee.
We have an agreement that will add a lot of money to Amnesty, and the Denmark kit is included. We will also give one percent of our online sales revenue to Amnesty. If it produces less than one million krone (£118,232), we will be disappointed, and there will be two revenue streams.
Did the organizers from Qatar respond?
We said we were going to have a meeting with them because life takes nothing from black or white. They weren’t in agreement with what we stated, that thousands of workers had died. However, they didn’t directly contact us through DFA.
“We should engage in a conversation with the Supreme Committee, listen to their statements, and proceed accordingly. It’s an ongoing process.”
Are there specific clubs that you would refuse to provide due to their track record on human rights? Hummel, the kit manufacturer for the Danish national team, has adopted an ethical position.
“We used to have a platform which we also wanted, but we are a commercial company aiming for profit. We have not reached this conclusion. It is a great question.”
Do we want to do business with teams that share common values, but also want to work with clubs that are not only focused on branding? Could enduring the most important things in our relationships influence it? What does this entail?
“There is much knowledge that can be gained, however, I believe it is our duty, specifically mine, as the proprietor. If there exists a club that receives support or funding from dubious origins, it may influence our inclination to collaborate with them. Ultimately.”
Presently, considering the information I currently possess, I would assert that it will impact our decision-making process, addressing the current events occurring worldwide. Does this imply that we would reject an offer from one of the top clubs in the Premier League, regardless of whether they have a sponsor or owner with controversial characteristics? At this moment, I am unable to provide an answer. We are not constructed from timber, after all.
Have you previously provided the shirt to a Qatari club team? Does that align with your stance on the World Cup?
“We are currently in a process that started five years ago when Vad Allan, the CEO and partner, was kicked off by Nielsen. We are not completely certain if this process is perfect for us. In the past, we have been sponsored by a Qatari club.”
However, we are also interested in selling a few jerseys. Furthermore, we possess commercial brands. Will this be the case in the future? I highly doubt it. Do I believe that we will be sponsoring a Qatari team tomorrow? Absolutely not. It’s not a clear-cut matter.
The values that are common to our society today are the criteria for choosing a club, and I can tell you that it would be difficult. I think it would be a little strange because of the whole narrative surrounding it and the jersey. If a businessman from Qatar, who wants to be a good guy and wants to make a common project, wants to do something great, then maybe we would.
Let’s say we didn’t go to Qatar because we’ve heard that there might be consequences associated with the change. It is also a question we had, because going there would create inside issues. Furthermore, nobody would have heard us saying that we should go, if we were to change our decision now.
“By means of athletics, our aim is to transform the globe. Acquire knowledge from it, take action, experiment. We would never have the audacity. Grow wealthier, apart from accomplishing anything, as trademarks, as corporations, as individuals, none of us could be the final outcome. (Regarding the previous association with the Qatari club), if we were concerned.”