This is a really interesting insight into high stakes football (https://www.thisisanfield.com/2019/06/the-surprise-influence-benfica-b-had-on-liverpools-champions-league-final-success/).
The glory and money rewards for winning the Champions League are enormous. Football inspired fashion is a major part of fashion revenues and mostly especially for clubs. I’ve spoken about PSG as a self-conscious fashion venture (https://www.ethicsoffashion.com/psg-football-club-as-fashion/). Liverpool are not, but their recent victory in the Champions League will certainly push shirt sales through the roof this summer.
These sales are driven by the endless human appetite for pantomime. It turns out you also win football trophies the same way.
The above article explains how Liverpool scouted a team (in Portugal) that played like their opponents in the final and then requested not only a game with them behind closed doors but that members of the team mimic the playing style of the Tottenham players.
It turns out that the mimickry of shirt sales is built upon mimickry invoked in strategy and practice. Huizinga is not surprised (V&R Chapter 6)
