Clapton CFC’s International Brigades-inspired away shirt has been used for six years now. It was brought out for 2018/19 season to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). It’s proven extremely popular so continues to be used into season 2024/25. Here’s the story of its design and historical significance, plus the meaning behind its symbols.
Historical context: The Spanish Civil War
Spain is a stable democracy now, but for much of the 20th century it either lurched between political crises or was under fascist dictatorship. The Second Spanish Republic (1931-39) was democratically elected and ceded new rights to workers -especially women – and greater autonomy for the regions, such as the Basque Country and Catalonia. It also curtailed the influence of the traditional powers in Spain – the landowners, the church and the army.
This riled the army to the point that General Franco launched a coup d’etat on 17 July 1936, setting in train the Spanish Civil War, which would last until April 1939. Franco’s Nationalists triumphed and he presided over a brutal dictatorship that lasted until his death in November 1975.
Britain and France were in appeasement mode following the Great War and didn’t want to get involved. Nazi Germany and Mussolini’s Italy were only too happy to support Franco militarily, while Stalin’s USSR backed the Republic. While Britain and France wouldn’t commit troops, many did volunteer to fight for the Republic in the ‘International Brigades’, which included 2,500 men and women from the UK and Ireland – including, famously, writer George Orwell, whose book Homage to Catalonia chronicles his experiences.
Clapton CFC and the Spanish Civil War
Clapton Community Football Club is based in East London, a very working-class area which, in the 1930s, saw plenty of both left-wing and far-right political activity. I remember my gran, who grew up in Bethnal Green in the 1930s, telling me in my ‘gothic stage’ as a teen when I was wearing black, “if you’da come rand our manor wivva black shirt on in my day we’da knocked yer bleedin’ lights aaaat!”. The culmination of this activity was the Cable Street (Stepney) riot of 1936, when East Enders blocked a path that the police were trying to clear for the British Union of Fascists to march through, which was a heavily populated Jewish area. The locals were having none of it.
Several people from Newham, where Clapton CFC is based, fought in Spain, so to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of the Civil War, Clapton opened a competition to design a commemorative shirt. The chosen design was then created by Italian ethical sports gear maker, Rage Sports.
The symbolism of Clapton CFC’s away shirt
The red, yellow and purple reflect the colours of the flag of the Second Spanish Republic.
The three-pointed yellow star is the mark of the International Brigades, while the three downward-pointing arrows (Rage’s logo, in this case) are a common anti-fascist symbol first used by the Iron Front in Germany in the 1930s.
On the back shoulders under the colour are the words “¡No Pasarán!” (They shall not pass), which was the famous rallying cry of the Republican politician and orator, Dolores Ibárruri, also known as “La Pasionária” (The Passion Flower).
My version is a first edition, so features the old club badge with vertical stripes. More recent kits feature the new crest design with horizontal stripes.
Clapton CFC in Spain
Clapton CFC has a history of playing progressive clubs within Spain. In 2019, Clapton played Barcelona fifth-tier side Club Esportiu Júpiter, who have their own fascinating story about involvement in the Spanish Civil War. The match was part of Barcelona’s Primavera Republicana (Republican Spring) festival.
Most recently at the time of writing, Clapton played progressive Madrid club, Independiente de Vallecas.
If you’re interested in the history of football against fascism, please read my book The Defiant: A History of Football Against Fascism, which includes more detail on Clapton CFC, CE Júpiter, and an interview with Independiente de Vallecas.