Why do the British and Irish Lions wear red jerseys?

BBC News

4 hours ago

The British and Irish Lions have worn their traditional kit of red jerseys, white shorts and blue socks with a green turnover at the top on every tour since 1950.The colours were chosen in order to represent the unity of the four rugby nations which make up the Lions - England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.Prior to 1950, the Lions had worn kits of various different designs, all featuring the colours red, white, and blue.The first Lions kit in 1888 featured blue and red horizontal stripes on a white shirt, with white shorts and blue socks.That was followed by a variety of similar designs until 1910, when the team adopted a kit made up of a dark blue jersey with white collar, white shorts, and red socks.
In the 1930 tour of New Zealand, the blue jersey design generated significant controversy. Firstly, it caused a kit clash with the All Blacks, who were forced to find an alternative, leading them to wear white for the first time in their history.Meanwhile, Irish lock George Beamish questioned the lack of green on the kit, leading to the addition of a green turnover on the socks. The blue jersey remained until the last tour before World War Two, in South Africa in 1938.After the end of the conflict, the Lions scheduled a return to New Zealand in 1950, and the blue jersey was dropped in favour of red in order to avoid the same kit clash which led to the dispute in 1930.From there, the red jersey has stuck and remained unchanged aside from minor branding additions.Kit supplier logos began appearing on Lions kits in 1993, when Nike manufactured the team's apparel, while the first front-of-shirt sponsor was Scottish Provident in 1997.
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