Clapton CFC - Away Kit - No Pasarán!

In the summer of 2018, a tiny east London non-league club released an away kit that placed them firmly on the map as one of the most exciting and progressive organisations in the field (literally).

Designed and chosen by the members themselves in a democratic poll, Clapton Community Football Club’s new strip quickly became one of the most talked-about shirts in European football. More than 5,400 pre-orders flooded in from around the world, especially Spain, forcing the club to pause sales while volunteers and their small Italian supplier scrambled to keep up.

The reason? A bold, unapologetic tribute to the Second Spanish Republic and the anti-fascist fighters of the 1930s. Red, yellow and purple stripes. “No pasarán” across the back. The three-pointed star of the International Brigades on the sleeve.

For me, a History teacher with a passion for the Spanish Civil War – it’s like catnip. This wasn’t just football merchandise — it was a wearable history lesson and a statement of values.

The club itself is a fascinating story, in February 2018, disillusioned supporters of the historic Clapton FC — a club that had played at the Old Spotted Dog Ground since 1888 — broke away after a bitter dispute with the owners. The chief executive had tried to liquidate the charity running the club, prompting the Clapton Ultras to boycott home games for the entire 2017-18 season. They wanted football that belonged to the fans, not profit-driven owners. So, they created their own club: fan-owned, anti-racist, anti-sexist, anti-homophobic and proudly political. Based temporarily in Walthamstow and competing in the Middlesex County League, Clapton CFC embodies grassroots football at its purest — run by the people, for the people.

Club members voted from 16 designs, and the winning concept came from designer Thom, who wrote on the club website: “I really wanted to make something that marked the importance of the sacrifice of those who fought against fascism.” The kit is manufactured by Rage Sports, a small ethical Italian company chosen because it works with grassroots clubs fighting racism, fascism and inequality. Maurizio Affuso of Rage told the club: “Rage Sport will always be there for the Clapton fans because like them we believe in a new way of doing football and because we strongly believe some battles can be fought both on and off the pitch.”

The club expected to sell around 250 shirts. They sold thousands in weeks. Volunteers worked flat out handling orders, emails and social media messages. Some proceeds went to running costs; the rest were earmarked for the International Brigade Memorial Trust to fund education and memorial work in the UK. A new memorial to the International Brigades were unveiled, proudly, at the Club’s ground in 2025.

The colours and symbolism embody the flag of the Second Spanish Republic — ‘la tricolor’. Adopted on 27 April 1931, just thirteen days after elections swept the Republicans to victory in Spain’s big cities and ended the Bourbon monarchy, the flag features three equal horizontal bands: red, yellow and dark purple (morado oscuro). Red and yellow had long symbolised the former Crown of Aragon (and obviously still sit in the current Spanish flag). The purple band honoured Castile and León, recalling the Pendón Morado — the ancient armorial banner of Castile, also flown by the Comuneros in their 16th-century revolt.

International Brigades volunteers took this flag and added their distinctive three-pointed red star to the yellow band. That same star also appears on the Clapton CFC shirt.

“No pasarán” is placed on the back of the shirt — “They shall not pass” — was the defiant slogan of the anti-fascist forces, most famously shouted by Republican leaders during the defence of Madrid.

So who were The International Brigades? At the outbreak of the civil war over 35,000 volunteers from over 50 countries travelled to Spain to fight fascism. Among them was a young George Orwell. He joined the POUM militia on the Aragon front, was shot through the throat, and later wrote Homage to Catalonia — his classic account of the war.

The Second Spanish Republic lasted only eight years (1931-1939) but in that time it introduced sweeping reforms: land redistribution, women’s suffrage, workers’ rights and secular education. But deep divisions — between monarchists, fascists, anarchists, communists and moderate republicans — tore the Republic apart. In July 1936, a military coup led by General Francisco Franco, backed by Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, plunged Spain into civil war. The elected Republican government, supported by trade unions, left-wing parties and the International Brigades, fought back. Franco’s Nationalists won in April 1939. Franco ruled as dictator until his death in 1975, suppressing republican symbols and memory. The tricolour flag became the banner of Spanish exiles, then of modern trade unions, left-wing parties such as United Left, and republican movements.

Clapton CFC’s shirt, released to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of the conflict, carries all of that history onto the pitch. It is an absolute beauty and its messaging is sublime, it is community football at its most powerful.

So, if you’re looking for a shirt that means something, get this one in. No pasarán. They shall not pass — on the terraces, on the pitch, or in the streets. Clapton Community FC have revolutionised football kits.