(Reuters) – The New Zealand women’s soccer team will swap their home kit’s white shorts for teal blue to ease players’ period anxieties, the country’s football association (NZF) said on Monday.
New Zealand will wear the kit in friendlies against Iceland on Friday and Nigeria next week and at the Women’s World Cup, which they will co-host with Australia from July 20 to Aug. 20.
“The absence of white shorts now is fantastic for women with any kind of period anxiety,” New Zealand striker Hannah Wilkinson said.
“It’s always something that women athletes, not just footballers have had to deal with. In the end it just helps us focus more on performance and shows a recognition and appreciation of women’s health.”
NZF’s decision follows similar moves by the England women’s team, clubs including Manchester City and the Ireland women’s rugby team.
“As an organisation, New Zealand Football wholeheartedly supports the shift away from white shorts for our women’s international players,” chief executive Andrew Pragnell said.
(Reporting by Hritika Sharma in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
