Patrick

French company Patrick entered the English football fan’s consciousness in the early 1980s when they formed part of the new continental kit revolution of the time. Alongside their national compatriots Le Coq Sportif, they launched some bold, sleek and shiny designs including strips for Southampton and Swansea. Later deals with Reading and Birmingham City were also struck. Dispensing with the traditional ‘badge over the heart, manufacturer logo on right’ aesthetic, Patrick placed the badge slap bang in the middle of the shirt with a logo on each sleeve.

The company had actually been in existence for a long time - formed originally as Patrick-Chaussures Techniques in 1892 by Patrice Beneteau and like many other brands at the time they focused primarily on sports footwear.

With the advent of high profile sports sponsorship in the 1970s and 1980s Patrick boots could be spotted on the feet of Michel Platini and Kevin Keegan (no doubt a key factor in the company’s deal with Keegan’s then club Southampton in 1980).

Following their early 1980s heyday Patrick, withdrew slightly from the highly competitive sponsorships battles that began to dominate the sportswear industries and have only sporadically been spotted on football pitches throughout England, most notably in deals with Hull City, Sheffield United, West Bromwich Albion and the Northern Ireland national side. Now based in Belgium, the brand can be seen on the kits of EA Guingamp in France, Zulte Waregem in Belgium and NAC Breda and PEC Zwolle in Holland although the company still produce a variety of footwear for a wide range of sports.