Beige Brigade
Encyclopedia
The Beige Brigade is a group of colourful and passionate New Zealand
sport fans who identify themselves by wearing beige colours. A version of this uniform was worn by the New Zealand limited overs cricket
team during the 1980s (in contrast to the more familiar black, which is worn by almost all New Zealand sports teams, including the current cricket team).
The Beige Brigade began in 1999 as a group of dedicated New Zealand cricket fans began wearing home sewn beige uniforms to New Zealand matches. These home-made kits echoed the much maligned official beige uniform of the 1980s. The uniform become popular as a gesture of solidarity for the New Zealand team of the eighties who were very successful. Today the Beige Brigade sell the uniforms to the general public together with a contract outlining the expectations that come with being a Beige Brigadier.
Such was the impact on the sporting culture of New Zealand, that NZC agreed to have the Black Caps wear a version of the beige uniform for the inaugural Twenty20
international between New Zealand and Australia
. This was a far cry from the early days of the Beige Brigade when CEO Martin Snedden
told the Brigade's top brass that "NZ Cricket had invested heavily in the black branding for the Black Caps and that a return to beige was completely out of the question." The decision to wear the beige uniforms did not go down well with the members of the Beige Brigade - certain members felt NZC had unjustly missed them out of the process, despite the work done by supporters designing, funding the manufacture of and popularising the clothing.
Since then, New Zealand supporters in beige have been seen at sporting fixtures all over the world including Rugby Union
matches, and the Beige Brigade organise tours to selected major sporting events.
Although the Beige Brigade began with the mere donning of the replica beige shirt, what was once a recondite club has now become something akin to a youth movement, reduxing all manner of icons of New Zealand pop culture circa 1981. Brigadiers and those who flatter them in imitation are now commonly seen sporting the very short shorts known as "Stubbies
" and other items such as sweat bands, fluorescent zinc sunblock, and aviator sunglasses that were once staples of New Zealand summer menswear.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
sport fans who identify themselves by wearing beige colours. A version of this uniform was worn by the New Zealand limited overs cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
team during the 1980s (in contrast to the more familiar black, which is worn by almost all New Zealand sports teams, including the current cricket team).
The Beige Brigade began in 1999 as a group of dedicated New Zealand cricket fans began wearing home sewn beige uniforms to New Zealand matches. These home-made kits echoed the much maligned official beige uniform of the 1980s. The uniform become popular as a gesture of solidarity for the New Zealand team of the eighties who were very successful. Today the Beige Brigade sell the uniforms to the general public together with a contract outlining the expectations that come with being a Beige Brigadier.
Such was the impact on the sporting culture of New Zealand, that NZC agreed to have the Black Caps wear a version of the beige uniform for the inaugural Twenty20
Twenty20
Twenty20 is a form of cricket, originally introduced in England for professional inter-county competition by the England and Wales Cricket Board , in 2003. A Twenty20 game involves two teams, each has a single innings, batting for a maximum of 20 overs. Twenty20 cricket is also known as T20 cricket...
international between New Zealand and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. This was a far cry from the early days of the Beige Brigade when CEO Martin Snedden
Martin Snedden
Martin Colin Snedden played 25 Tests, between 1981 and 1990, and 93 One Day Internationals, between 1980 and 1990, for New Zealand...
told the Brigade's top brass that "NZ Cricket had invested heavily in the black branding for the Black Caps and that a return to beige was completely out of the question." The decision to wear the beige uniforms did not go down well with the members of the Beige Brigade - certain members felt NZC had unjustly missed them out of the process, despite the work done by supporters designing, funding the manufacture of and popularising the clothing.
Since then, New Zealand supporters in beige have been seen at sporting fixtures all over the world including Rugby Union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
matches, and the Beige Brigade organise tours to selected major sporting events.
Although the Beige Brigade began with the mere donning of the replica beige shirt, what was once a recondite club has now become something akin to a youth movement, reduxing all manner of icons of New Zealand pop culture circa 1981. Brigadiers and those who flatter them in imitation are now commonly seen sporting the very short shorts known as "Stubbies
Stubbies (brand)
Stubbies is the brand name for fashion shorts in Australia and New Zealand. The shorts were introduced in 1972 as short fashion shorts for men. Since then the range has expanded to include a range of styles of shorts and shirts for men, and shirts and schoolwear for boys and girls.Stubbies has...
" and other items such as sweat bands, fluorescent zinc sunblock, and aviator sunglasses that were once staples of New Zealand summer menswear.