Sportswear for team players

Abstract

Strip for team games in the form of a shirt, trousers or an integral suit consisting of two layers—a inner layer consisting of tight-meshed elastic netting material (1) and an outer layer consisting of ordinary fabric, which is attached in individual parts (2-14) to the elastic tight-meshed undersuit (1), the parts not being attached to each other in adjacent areas at the selected attachment areas—the classic stretching effect of the elastic tight-meshed netting undersuit (1) making the affected parts (2-14) of the external fabric suit move apart at the attachment areas affected in the clothes-holding carried out by an opponent—while at the same time, the tight-meshed netting elastic surface of the undersuit (1) at the attachment areas involved is clearly exposed, thereby immediately signalling the unlawful action—the stretchability of the elastic tight-meshed undersuit also having the effect that the immediate effect of the opponent's clothes-holding is neutralized—the same stretchability making the external fabric garment parts (2-14) affected be pulled back into their initial positions at the affected attachments areas, after the opponent's clothes-holding has ceased—the affected attachment areas again becoming invisible.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a complete strip device for team games, resisting the problems and effects of an opponent's holding of the clothing as the game is being played. The facts that an opponent's holding of the clothing during game performance is not allowed according to given rules of the game, and that the referee immediately has to intervene and judge the offence; are known and undisputable. But, in most cases of an opponent holding the clothing, the main problems are that it is very difficult for the referee to notice it, and the player subjected to the clothes-holding is actively prevented in practicing his playing skills, and is in fact, in many cases, as a direct consequence of the holding of his clothing, directly prevented from scoring a goal, or in the opposite case, as a defender, directly prevented from warding off an opportunity resulting in a goal, and this without the referee noticing or observing the unlawful action.

[0002] The result of a completed team game may in many cases solely rely on the referee's not having noticed or observed such clearly unlawful actions as hidden clothes-holding by an opponent during the completed team game, and in many cases, if the referee had registered or observed the offences, a completed team game would have had a totally different final result. As an example from football could be mentioned, among others, the European football championship in the year 2000—in which many millions of TV viewers could clearly witness through the TV screen how extensive and numerous they were, the fouls by hidden clothes-holding by opponents, and they could just as clearly witness how numerous they were, the offences that the referees did not notice or observe, and that the final results of many of the matches played could have been completely changed if the referees had observed and judged each single offence.

[0003] This invention concerns a strip for team games with a device that resists and neutralizes the effect of an opponent's clothes-holding during the performance of a team game, while, at the same time, the device has the effect of immediately making visible the unlawful action, which will immediately result in a response/judgement from the referee—and in addition to this, the invention has a clearly preventive effect on the extensive and repeated problems of hidden clothes-holding by opponents during team game performance.

[0004] This invention may be described as a complete sports suit with an integral undersuit consisting of a tight-meshed elastic netting stretchable in all directions—netting elastics—the outer fabric garment in individual loose parts being attached externally on this undersuit at selected attachment areas. The elastic stretching effect at the attachment areas makes the loose parts of the external fabric garment move away from each other at the attachment areas affected when an opponent holds the clothing, the tight-meshed netting elastics surface becoming/being made clearly visible at the same time, thereby immediately revealing and signalling the unlawful action. The stretch effect in the attachment areas also has the immediate effect of neutralizing an opponent's clothes-holding, and the same stretch effect makes the external loose fabric garment parts return to their initial positions at the affected attachment areas when the opponent's clothes-holding ceases, the affected attachment areas again becoming invisible.

[0005] As described, this complete sports suit for team games is made up of two layers, an inner elastic tight-meshed netting layer and an outer layer of ordinary fabric, this outer layer consisting of individual parts attached to the netting layer but not to each other at the attachment areas. As a visibility factor by an opponent's clothes-holding, it is therefore important that the colour of the highly elastic netting device adjacent to the attachment areas—with omnidirectional stretch effect—is a colour that is substantially different from the other colours of the rest of the general outer fabric suit.

[0006] The inner layer of the suit—the inner tight-meshed netting layer with an omnidirectional stretch effect—has thickened points, at which the netting layer is attached to the fabric part of the outer suit, the thickened points having a rounded shape on the side facing the body/skin. This has the effect that the outer layer of the suit (the fabric part) is spaced from the body/skin, without sticking to the body in moist weather or by sweat, this having the effect that the inner elastic tight-meshed netting layer provides a general air conditioning next to the body/skin.

[0007] WO-A1 98/46094, GB-A1 2340379 and GB-A1 2340382 all describe sportswear for team sports, for example football or similar, in the form of shirts or shirts and trousers, in which, firstly, the pulling or holding of the clothing by an opponent does not immediately prevent the freedom of movement, and, secondly, has the effect of making offences visible to the referee. It is described that releasable fasteners open when loaded, possibly exposing fabric of a different colour, respectively that pleated or folded layers are released, becoming extra wide.

[0008] WO-A1 98/46094 also describes elastic means disposed in such a manner that the pleated or folded fabric returns to its initial state after the opponent has let go of the shirt/trousers (the strip).

[0009] This invention—strip for team games—is substantially distinguished from all the devices mentioned in WO-A1 96/46094, GB-A1 2340379 and GB-A1 23403B2. What is substantially different, is the fact that in this invention—strip for team games—a two-layer suit is involved an integral undersuit of a tight-meshed elastic netting layer and an outer layer of ordinary fabric in individual parts attached to the inner netting layer, but not attached to each other at the attachment areas. The invention appears as a complete integral strip for team games, consisting of two layers, an outer layer and an inner layer, the elasticity/stretch effect of the outer fabric layer being of no importance to the functioning of the device by an opponent's clothes-holding during game performance.

[0010] What is further substantially different in this invention, is that the functioning of the device has the effect of making visible the unlawful action—the opponent's clothes-holding—long before the effect of the clothes-holding is there; that is to say, the stretched surface of the tight-meshed elastic netting undersuit at the affected attachment areas has been made maximally visible long before any hindering effect has been achieved.

[0011] This invention further has a substantially distinguishing additional function, which is that the inner layer of the strip, in the form of a tight-meshed elastic netting suit, is configured in such a way that it creates an air space with air flow between the body/skin and the outer fabric layer, having the effect that the outer fabric suit does not stick to the body/skin in moist weather or by sweat—and otherwise provides general air conditioning adjacent to the body/skin.

[0012] The fact that a strip expands or contracts extremely, is not in itself proof or evidence that an unlawful action has been committed by an opponent—neither is the fact that pleated or folded layers are released and become extra wide, nor that releasable fasteners open when loaded, possibly exposing fabric of a different colour. Evidence and exact proof with pertinent response from the referee is that the referee (or the linesman) actually observes and notices the unlawful action being carried out, resulting then in pertinent response/assessment from the referee. The device according to this invention has the effect that an opponent's clothes-holding is quickly observed and noticed by the referee, as if it was a direct observation of the action/offence itself—with the immediate following response from the referee.

[0013] The device of this invention has been shown in the appended illustrative drawing, FIGS. 1-8, FIGS. 1-5 providing explanatory references to the attachment areas shown in dashed lines. FIGS. 6-8 provide practical and factual references to the functioning of the attachment areas, in addition to the unaffected attachment areas being shown in dashed lines, and shows the functioning of the device prior to and during actual clothes-holding carried out by an opponent during game performance—attachment areas exposed in connection with clothes-holding being given the reference numeral 1.

[0014] FIG. 1 shows an illustrative rear view drawing of a short-sleeved strip

[0015] FIG. 2 shows the same in a front view

[0016] FIG. 3 shows the sane in a side view

[0017] FIG. 4 shows the same in a side view, the attachment area at the shoulder joint being shown in cross section

[0018] FIG. 5 shows the same in a side view, the attachment area at the elbow joint being shown in dashed lines on a strip top with long sleeves.

[0019] FIG. 6 shows a partial drawing of a moving performing player wearing the strip according to this invention, the attachment areas being shown in dashed lines.

[0020] FIG. 7 shows a partial drawing of the same player in motion, the drawing referring to clothes-holding carried out by an opponent occurring at the left-hand side part of the strip trousers/shorts, this immediately resulting, as shown in the drawings, in a yielding of the loose parts at the attachment areas, the offence thereby immediately being made visible through the extended elastic tight-meshed netting surface at the attachment area as an “eye catcher” for the reference and/or linesman.

[0021] FIG. 8 shows a partial drawing of the same player in motion, like FIG. 7, the drawing showing clothes-holding carried out by an opponent at the left-hand part of the strip top—this having as a direct consequence the immediate yielding in the attachment areas, through the inner elastic tight-meshed netting, and the unlawful action being made clearly visible to the referee and/or linesman.

[0022] The attachment regions have been shown in dashed lines in the drawings—the dashed lines referring to the attachment areas, in which the individual outer fabric parts are not attached to each other but are attached only to the underlying elastic tight-meshed netting suit.

[0023] In addition to the indication of the attachment areas, made visible in clothes-holding, by the reference numeral 1, the individual outer fabric parts, which are not attached to each other but are only attached to the underlying elastic tight-meshed netting suit, are given reference numerals from and including reference numeral 2—from the top downwards—the two outer, loose parts of the lower sleeve of a long-sleeved strip top being given the reference numerals 13 and 14—a total of 13 individual outer fabric parts of the strip being given the reference numerals from 2 to 14.

Claims

1. Strip for team games, in the form of a shirt, trousers or an integral suit comprising an elastic netting material disposed in such a way that the suit expands when someone pulls at the suit, thereby making visible an unlawful action of clothes-holding by an opponent, characterized in that the strip consists of two layers, the innermost layer being an elastic tight-meshed netting material (1), to which are attached parts (2-14) of an ordinary fabric as an outer layer, these parts (2-14) not being connected to each other at adjacent areas.

2. Strip for team games according to claim 1, characterized in that the predominating colour of the elastic stretchable netting meshes of the undersuit of the device is a colour which is substantially different from the other colours of the external fabric garment.

3. Strip for team games according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the elastic tight-meshed netting material of the undersuit is attached at points to the external fabric garments the attachment points being of a larger volume than the rest of the tight-meshed netting material, the attachment points forming, at the same time, part of the elastic netting material and creating a general distance/air space between the undersuit and the outer fabric garment, and also creating on the opposite side, through the enlarged volume of the attachment points and through the direct contact of the points with the body/skin, a general distance/air space between the elastic netting suit and the body/skin.

4. Strip for team games according to claims 1-3, characterized in that the attachment points of the elastic tight-meshed undersuit—to which the outer fabric garment is attached, and which, due to their enlarged volume, on their opposite side touch the body/skin at points—may be of varying sizes and shapes and have different spacing.

5. Strip for team games according to claims 1-4, characterized in that the mesh of the integral tight-meshed netting undersuit may have meshes of different shapes and sizes.

6. Strip for team games according to claims 1-5, characterized in that to be adapted for different sports, the individual outer fabric parts (2-14) of the outer garment may be divided further into several parts (2-14) which are not joined together at adjacent portions.

7. Strip for team games according to claims 1-6, characterized in that—in its entirety or in parts—the elastic tight-meshed undersuit may have such a tight mesh that the meshes themselves will not be clearly visible unless subjected to stretching.