Fans watching Saturday’s FA Cup tie between Sunderland and Newcastle United were left frustrated after a colour blind clash of the two teams’ kits.
With Sunderland in their traditional red and white stripes, against Newcastle’s black and white stripes, there was insufficient contrast in the kits for colour blind viewers to distinguish between the two comfortably.
It was not the first kit clash in this season’s competition, with Charlton Athletic’s red against Cray Paper Valley Mills’ green causing problems in the first round.
There were significant complaints on social media about this weekend’s kit clash, with the match — which Newcastle won 3-0 — broadcast on ITV.
Colour blindness affects one in 12 men and one in 200 women, with red and green the most common problematic colour combination. The Football Association’s (FA) guidance also cites red and black as troublesome.
“It is extremely disappointing that the FA has allowed this combination of kits to be worn, especially in a televised game,” said Kathryn Albany-Ward, founder of Colour Blind Awareness.
“Sunderland and Newcastle both wearing home kits is a notorious clash for people with colour blindness and in fact this combination of kits (red vs black, including striped and patterned kits) is noted as…
