Sam Hoey, Design Lead at Designit, believes Nike and the FA "took a misstep in underestimating the power of a logo to evoke long-held, deeply felt allegiances" with the new look St George's Cross on the back of the new England football kit that has got even the Prime Minister talking.

Sam commented on the contentious flag change saying:

“It was never going to pass without comment, but Nike’s changes to the St George’s flag – the national symbol of England – have created a politicised outcry. Rightly so - can you imagine Nike giving the Stars and Stripes a makeover for the US kit?

“Yes, brands and logos get updated all the time (and to be fair, Umbro dabbled similarly years ago too). The issue is that when it comes to brand reputation, there’s a fine line between designing to refresh, and wilful erosion of a national identity.

“Nike and its design team – not to mention the FA, which signed this off – took a misstep in underestimating the power of a logo to evoke long-held, deeply felt allegiances. It’s curious given how much stock Nike puts into its own brand narrative.

“At best, you could argue that in the process of design brief, reviews and iterations, the team got carried away (albeit in the wrong direction). What’s more likely is that this is an instance of how the power balance between brand sponsors and organisations like the FA has shifted so that something as central to national identity as the flag has not been flagged, questioned and put straight before a stitch was sewn.”