Most new sportswear brands do not survive. The economics of competing with Nike and Adidas are well understood: the two giants control the dominant share of professional football contracts, command manufacturing relationships that smaller companies cannot access on comparable terms, and operate marketing budgets that make independent positioning almost impossible. Castore did it anyway.
The founding logic
Castore was founded by brothers Tom and Phil Beahon in Liverpool. The premise was specific: that the premium end of performance sportswear was underserved. Nike and Adidas competed fiercely in mass-market football, but the brothers argued that professional athletes and serious consumers wanted something different. The pitch was built around tighter construction tolerances and a positioning that borrowed more from luxury goods than from mass sport.
The name came from the star Castor, one of the Gemini twins in Greek mythology. The brand adopted the double star as its visual mark, a deliberate nod to the origin. From the beginning, Castore was not trying to be a challenger brand that undercut on price. The opposite: they priced above the market and argued that the product justified it.
Entering football through Glasgow
The first major football contract was with Rangers FC, announced ahead of the 2020/21 season. The timing was notable. Rangers were returning to competitive European football after a period in the lower divisions, and the club's commercial ambitions matched what Castore was trying to build. Both parties needed the relationship to work.
The Rangers shirts Castore produced were, in terms of design, largely well received. The problems came in production. Reports of quality control failures, including stitching coming loose, badges detaching and fabric issues at relatively low wear counts, generated significant attention online and in the Scottish press. For a brand whose entire value proposition was premium quality, the early Rangers kits became a test that Castore visibly struggled with at the start.
The company acknowledged the problems and worked through them. By the time the initial Rangers contract period had run its course, the manufacturing quality had largely improved. But the early issues established a narrative that the brand spent several years overtaking.
Newcastle and the Premier League spotlight
The simultaneous supply deal with Newcastle United brought Castore into the Premier League and into a much larger media environment. Newcastle's fanbase is among the most vocal in England, and the kit matters to that supporter culture in ways it does not at every club.
The Newcastle United 2021-22 home kit was the first under the new deal, a traditional black and white stripe shirt that was well-designed but drew criticism for quality issues in production runs. The 2022-23 home kit followed as the club's new ownership settled in, and by the 2023-24 season the product quality had visibly improved and the designs were being received more positively.
Leverkusen and the unbeaten season
The signing that changed the perception of Castore most significantly was Bayer Leverkusen. The 2022-23 home kit marked the beginning of the partnership, but it was the 2023-24 season that put Castore in an entirely different spotlight.
Leverkusen went 34 Bundesliga matches unbeaten under Xabi Alonso, winning the club's first ever league title. They also reached the Europa League final. The Castore shirts worn during that run, red with black trim, clean construction and the Castore star mark on the chest, became some of the most wanted recent shirts in the secondary market. Wearing Castore while going unbeaten through an entire Bundesliga season is a different kind of brand moment than the early Newcastle difficulties.
The 2024-25 Leverkusen home kit continued the partnership as the club sought to defend their title. Castore's work with Leverkusen showed what the brand was capable of when the production issues of the early period had been largely addressed.
A widening portfolio
Beyond the headline deals, Castore built a portfolio that now spans multiple leagues and countries. Aston Villa, Athletic Club, Everton, Feyenoord. The breadth of the current client list shows a brand operating across the Premier League, La Liga, Eredivisie and Bundesliga simultaneously.
The England Cricket relationship gave Castore a different kind of visibility: a major national team association in a sport with its own distinct consumer base, appearing in broadcast environments that extended beyond football. The McLaren Racing deal added Formula One exposure. In each case the premium positioning held, and Castore did not pursue volume deals that would dilute the brand's standing.
The manufacturing argument
The core Castore claim, premium materials and better construction, became more defensible as the manufacturing problems of the early period were addressed. The brand introduced proprietary fabric technologies, and the AerTek performance material became a recognisable feature of their football shirts. For collectors and consumers who handle their shirts rather than simply photographing them, the difference in fabric weight and construction from the mass-market alternatives is noticeable.
The pricing remains above comparable Nike and Adidas replicas. Whether the premium is justified is a question that consumers answer differently. What is not in question is that Castore found a market willing to pay it and built a business on that basis.
Where they are now
Castore now supplies clubs across the Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga and lower English divisions, alongside national associations and teams in other sports. The brand that started with a pitch deck arguing that premium sportswear was underserved has, in a relatively short period, made that argument in the most public arena available.
The early criticism has not been forgotten, particularly by Newcastle and Rangers supporters, but it has been contextualised by what came after. Browse the full Castore catalogue on ShirtSociety to see the complete range of shirts the brand has produced since entering football.
