Johan Cruyff tears off a stripe..
Johan Cruyff
The rivalry between the Dassler brothers which led to the birth of Puma is part of folklore. What is lesser known is the shenanigans and the interesting anecdotes which came along with it. I wanted to share one of my favorite ones, that of Johan Cruff and the Dutch national team kit and this comes from the Guardian out of their famous Q/A knowledge section:
The Dutch FA had a deal with Adidas to supply their kit, and your Johnny Reps and Rob Rensenbrinks of this world were only too happy to wear the stripy orange shirts during the 1974 World Cup in Germany.Cruyff, of course, had other ideas. He had an exclusive personal deal with Adidas’s rivals Puma, who supplied him with their classic Puma King boots. Because of this, he was unwilling to sport the three trademark stripes of Adidas and insisted on a two-striped version instead. As you would expect, he got exactly what he wanted.
Although Cruyff wasn’t around to cause the German kit giants bother when Holland embarked on their 1978 World Cup campaign, his rebellious spirit lived on. The van de Kerkhof twins, Rene and Willy, insisted on being issued with Cruyff-style two-striped shirts else they were off. But did the Dutch FA give in to this blatant show of player power?Of course they did.
