Football Australia has teamed up with M.J. Bale Australia, to provide the Socceroos with its official centenary suit.
M.J. Bale has produced a personalised homegrown ‘Centenary Suit’ for the Australian playing squad, as well as the coaching and support staff for the World Cup in Qatar.
Each player’s name, and the number of caps they have for the Socceroos, have been embroidered into the lining of their Centenary Suits.
Socceroos’ captain Mat Ryan said: “It’s an incredible honour to be a Socceroo and over the course of 2022, we’ve been able to celebrate the history of the team and all those who have represented the Socceroos both on and off the pitch over the past 100 years.
“As a member of the Australian men’s national football team, we always look to represent our country and fans with great integrity and pride on the global stage, so are excited to be wearing the special homegrown Centenary Suit made by an Australian company with strong values and who are environmentally aware.”
M.J. Bale’s Centenary Suits are made from Merino wool sourced from the New England region in New South Wales and woven in Italy by the Vitale Barberis Canonico textile mill into a navy birds eye cloth.
Founder and chief executive officer of M.J. Bale Australia, Matt Jensen, said: “We are very proud to be outfitting the Subway Socceroos with our suits, which match the high quality of their play.
“We expect to commercialise zero-emission suits in the near future through our 70 stores across Australia, which are already green-energy powered, while M.J. Bale has now offset our entire carbon footprint and named as Australia’s first full carbon neutral fashion brand.
“We are a trailblazer in the reduction of carbon emissions in the production of men’s clothing through innovative partnerships with a range of other local companies and national sports teams, including the Australian Men’s Cricket Team and Wallabies.”
M.J. Bale has developed a range of partnerships with farms, including Kingston Farm in Tasmania, and seaweed producer and manufacturer, Sea Forest, to supply asparagopsis, an eco-friendly seaweed, reducing methane emissions from sheep in the creation of woolen knitwear.
“We hope to be producing zero-emission suits for the Subway Socceroos as they take on the world in future campaigns,” Jensen concluded.
