Hackney Empire, Wood Street Walls and Hackney Women’s Football Club today unveil a specially commissioned football kit celebrating two landmark anniversaries in the borough: 125 years of Hackney Empire and 40 years of Hackney Women’s FC.
Designed by London College of Fashion student Daphne Scotto Di Carlo, the kit brings together archive material from Hackney Empire’s history with the identity and heritage of Hackney Women’s FC, Europe’s longest-running LGBTQIA+ football team.
The new kit is the result of a collaboration between Hackney Empire, Wood Street Walls CIC and London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London, which invited students to respond creatively to the history and legacy of both organisations through a paid design competition.
Three London College of Fashion students were selected to develop designs for the kit, responding to key themes from Hackney Empire’s history and visiting Hackney Archives to explore historical material and artefacts that could inform their work.
A panel made up of representatives from London College of Fashion, Wood Street Walls and Hackney Empire, alongside Hackney Women’s FC players, selected Daphne Scotto Di Carlo’s design as the winning kit.
Scotto Di Carlo’s design draws directly on Hackney Empire’s archive, using the typography and print styles of historic playbills and tickets, alongside references to the theatre’s distinctive red seating. The design makes a playful connection between football and theatre as shared spaces where communities come together to watch a performance, while the words “Playing with Pride Since 1986” celebrate Hackney Women’s FC’s history and identity.
The collaboration continued beyond the design of the kit. Following its production, a team of Hackney Empire Young Producers worked with Wood Street Walls’ Mark Clack and photographer Jake Green to art direct and deliver a campaign photoshoot, featuring Hackney Women’s FC players alongside Hackney Empire young artists.
The project forms part of Hackney Empire’s 125th anniversary year, celebrating not only the generations of artists, audiences and communities who have shaped the theatre since it opened in 1901, but also the young people, creatives and communities continuing to shape Hackney today.
Chris Sudworth, CEO of Hackney Empire, said: “This project brings together so many of the things we want our 125th anniversary to represent: celebrating Hackney Empire’s extraordinary history while creating opportunities for the next generation of artists and creatives, and working in partnership with the communities around us.
“It has been brilliant to see the students respond so imaginatively to our archive, and for our Young Producers to then take that work forward through the campaign shoot. Hackney Women’s FC has its own remarkable history in the borough, so this feels like a fitting celebration of two organisations that have community and inclusion at their heart.”
Daphne Scotto Di Carlo said: “Inspired by the typography and imagery found in the Hackney Empire archives, as well as Hackney itself-from corner shops and football pitches to everyday street details-the kit aims to embody the character of the area. As a female footballer, I also considered colourways and graphics as a way to give players confidence on the pitch.”