Get Your Kits Out Festival is heading to The Florrie this month

Get Your Kits Out Festival and Exhibition Celebrates Football, Fashion, and Culture

The highly anticipated Get Your Kits Out Festival will take place at The Florrie, Liverpool on Saturday, 28th September 2024. Celebrating the vibrant intersection of football, design, and fashion, this grassroots event promises a dynamic mix of grassroots designers, talks, workshops and entertainment, all highlighting the rich culture surrounding modern football.

Inspired by the Lionesses’ historic EURO 2022 win, the rise of football-inspired fashion trends and the rapid growth of local women’s grassroots football in Liverpool, founder of GIRLFANS Jacqui McAssey envisioned the festival as a space for this community to come together in real life.

McAssey shared:

“GIRLFANS highlighted a lack of visibility and equality in football, Get Your Kits Out is about equity. We are providing a tangible space for women to sell their products, exhibit their football photography, or just to connect socially with likeminded people. We’re also celebrating what has happened since I published the first fanzine in 2013, how the culture and community surrounding women’s roles in football has evolved. Liverpool is a football powerhouse, with successful women’s and men’s football teams, plus a growing grassroots scene that I’m part off, so launching it here seemed a natural fit.” 

Festival Highlights:

• A Grassroots Football-Fashion Market: Festival goers can browse a curated selection of up-cycled football fashion collections including a collaborative drop between Get Your Kits Out and reseller, Football Shirt 101. The drop, launching at the festival features, ‘Half-and-Half’ dresses, denim Battle Jackets, Football Manager tailored blazers, all made from damaged shirts provided by Football Shirts 101.
• Emerging micro brands: Oolalaly, for frilly football shirts, crocheted football jerseys by Sewlots, and made-to-order England hats by It’s Frazzles. Katie Oliver will be selling her ‘Get Back in the Kit’ tea towels, each one screen-printed by hand.
• A Store Like 94, will be bringing their iconic Tour De Tat to Liverpool, with a car boot sale housing a mega-collection of rare memorabilia sourced at flea markets across Europe. It’s affordable, and everything must go!
• Team Talks: Taking place in the Grand Hall, Team Talks will offer insightful discussions on the intersection of football and fashion by exploring viral trends like #Blokecore and the legacy of fashion told through Lionesses’ past and present. Speakers include Prof. Jean Williams, a seven-time Women’s World Cup reporter, whose research uncovered the Lost Lionesses of the unofficial, 1971 World Cup. She also consulted on the recent Copa71 film. Writer Simi Iluyomade from Versus, founder-manager of Romance FC, Trisha Lewis, sustainable fashion journalist, Sophie Benson from Dazed, Birkenhead-born journalist, Caoimhe O’Neil from The Athletic, and Ashlea Kemp of go-to soccer-style page, @wosowardrobe. Team Talks will be hosted by Holly Gilberston of Pacer, and Rachel Lee from The Digi Fairy.

Workshops, Music, and More:

Festival attendees can participate in both up-cycling and bracelet making workshops, while the Courtyard DJ Stage will feature performances from Liverpool DJ, Jade Edwards, Abbie Morris (DJ and Hot Goals FC player) and Tottenham’s finest, Lucky Iris Band. The event will also include both indoor and outdoor bars, a food menu, and plenty of other opportunities to celebrate the creativity and community that define football culture.

Exhibition: WHO ARE YA? Curated by Zoe Hitchen, Produced by Olivia Graham

• WHO ARE YA?, is a new exhibition revealing the work of both local and international female football photographers, offering unique perspectives on the sport and challenging traditional narratives. The works will be exhibited in multiple indoor venues, and in outdoor spaces on large digital screens, kindly provided by Open Media. 
• Cuerpas Reales, Hinchas Reales (Real Bodies, Real Fans): Founded by Erica Voget, this acclaimed photo series will be exhibited for the first time in the UK, in The Atrium Gallery, John Lennon School of Art & Design. This collection depicts the raw, authentic experiences of female football supporters, documented by a network of 80+ women photographers from across Ibero-America. The exhibition runs from 30.09.24-.11.10.24. This venue is open Monday-Friday only.
• Francesca Scandella: Renowned for her photographs of FC Internazionale Milano fans at San Siro, Scandella’s emotive work, shot on 35mm film, will be exhibited at Ropes & Twines from 25.09.24 – 09.10.24. Check opening times at the venue.
• Sarah Deboe, co-founder of MINT Collective, and Imke Oppenkamp: This duo explores themes of ‘home’ through the lens of their beloved Everton FC and Liverpool FC respectively. The works will be exhibited at Sevenstore from 24.09.24 – 31.10.24 Check opening times at the venue.

Find out more about the Get Your Kits Out festival here.

Find all the latest Liverpool news here.