Fashion, Design and Technology students have designed a collection of sportswear garments to form part of an exhibition at Manchester’s National Football Museum celebrating the life and career of footballer Edson Arantes do Nascimento, known as Pelé.

Pelé is widely regarded as the greatest football player of all time. He was voted Football Player of the Century, World Player of the Century and Time magazine voted him one of the most influential people of the 20th century.

To help celebrate Pelé’s life and successful career, Manchester Fashion Institute hosted a competition in collaboration with Manchester’s National Football Museum, asking Fashion Design and Technology student so design a garment capturing the essence of Pelé, the glamour, the magic and fun of Brazilian Football and the country’s rich cultural heritage.

As part of their research, the students had access to garments from the museum’s archive, allowing them to investigate the materials and finishes of the archived football garments in addition to understanding the ‘stories’ behind them.

The seven finalists chosen to feature their designs in the exhibition were Jessica Crampton, Grace Rudge, Jennifer Spencer, Paige Sharman, Megan Patton, James Miller and Tom Cree.

The students’ designs will stand side-by-side artwork borrowed from the Halcyon Gallery to form part of the Pelé: Art, Life, Football exhibition that will be open to the public from the 18 May 2017 and will run until Sunday 4 March 2018. Free admission.

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