Puma unveil new Bafana Bafana jersey

PUMA today unveiled the new South African national team football kit at the opening of a month-long exhibition, Interpretations of Africa: Football, Art and Design, at the Design Museum in London.


Star footballers including Bafana Bafana captain Steven Pienaar, Samuel Eto’o of Cameroon, John Mensah of Ghana and Yaya Touré of Ivory Coast attended the launch of the exhibition, where the Bafana Bafana kit is exhibited alongside new kits for PUMA’s other African teams – Ghana, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Algeria, Namibia, Senegal, Togo, Gabon and Burkina Faso.

South African artists Hasan and Husain Essop designed the new Bafana Bafana kit. The brothers are among a group of artists from the Creative African Network www.CreativeAfricanNetwork.com commissioned to design kits inspired by their country’s heritage, culture and traditions.

The kit, which Bafana Bafana will sport when they play against the Ivory Coast in the Nelson Mandela Challenge on Saturday 12 November, includes a rainbow graphic inspired by the phrase “Rainbow Nation” coined by Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

“Our design was influenced by South Africa’s diversity of cultures and how we have grown as a Nation. We worked with the PUMA design team to help us create a symbol that would reflect South African spirit. After hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup™, South Africans have united across the country to support their team. The kit represents the unity within our country and at the same time reflects our strong African identity,” said the Essop brothers.

Safa President Kirsten Nematandani agreed: “When Archbishop Desmond Tutu coined the phrase the Rainbow Nation he captured the unique character of our country, and how our different peoples would work together to make our country great. It is appropriate that the new rainbow kit design has been launched in the year of the Archbishop’s 80th birthday. We believe we have a kit and a team which can unite our fans behind the Bafana Bafana cause.”

The new kits are designed to maximise player’s performance. The jersey fits the body closely to avoid grabbing from the opponent and to enable players to exhibit their physical presence on the pitch. The fabric features PUMA’s U.S.P Moisture Management technology, which enhances airflow and body performance by dragging moisture away from the body and keeps the body at the ultimate performance temperature.

South African national team coach Pitso Mosimane is excited about the new Bafana Bafana look: “The new team kit from PUMA is technically advanced, looks great and tells the unique and wonderful story of our country. The players will wear it with pride.”

It also didnt go unnoticed that Steven Pienaar is wearing the upcoming Yellow/Purple V1.11 colourway we expect Puma to officially release soon. The new colourway certainly complements the new kit perfectly!


source: http://goo.gl/h8ZtQ