Unworn Olympic Kit: What Happens to It?
BBC Sport explores the fate of sports kit that never gets worn, using Team GB as an example.
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What happens to sports kit that never gets worn?
For elite athletes, wearing Olympic kit is a reward for years of dedication. However, some items never leave their packaging.
Inside a warehouse on England's south coast, boxes overflow with pristine Team GB clothing from Paris 2024 and Milan Cortina 2026 – tracksuit bottoms, jackets, hoodies, and T-shirts, including opening ceremony garments.
Commercial constraints often make selling excess stock difficult at scale.
A new partnership will now resell hundreds of items of surplus Team GB clothing and unsold merchandise through a dedicated platform, with proceeds supporting the British Olympic Association's (BOA) charity arm, the Team GB Foundation.
The initial launch includes 700 items from Paris 2024.
Why does sport have so much spare kit?
The BOA, like other sporting organisations, faces kit wastage challenges:
- Excess stock: Many orders are placed before knowing which athletes will compete.
- Contractual incentives: "Value in kind" contracts sometimes encourage free product, rather than transactional deals.
- Performance requirements: Tailored apparel designed for competition might not be easily adaptable for other uses.
The total surplus is hard to quantify since items might remain unused in athletes' garages or warehouses.
European football's Uefa estimates up to 60% of professional team apparel is disposed of at the end of each season.
Why not just give it away?
Sponsorship and supply contracts often prohibit reuse to protect brand exclusivity.
Adam Stevens, co-founder of Kitround, the specialist resale platform partnering with Team GB, explains these complexities.