Rio Ferdinand has been modelling the 2012-13 shirt which, according maunfacturers Nike, will feature iconic gingham check that hailed from Manchester’s famous cotton mills.

The Nike press release reads: "Manchester United Football club’s success has been founded on the traditional values of respect and hard work. Those values are what made Manchester the city it is and from the mid 18th century the cotton mills there were prolific in the industry.

"From those mills came the gingham fabric, an iconic check that like Manchester United is famous around the world and is now - for the first time - used on a Manchester United home shirt.

"The tonal gingham in traditional and iconic red gives the home shirt a bold new look. The black v-neck collar gives the shirt a contemporary look. The inner back neck graphic on the shirt reads, 'Forged in Industry, Striving for Glory'; paying tribute to the cities industrial past but also the club’s hard-working ethos."

And in case you're wondering just how advanced this kit is, Nike add: "The kits are made out of 23% lighter fabric with 20% stronger knit structure than Nike’s previous kits and feature Nike Dri-FIT technology to wick moisture away from athletes to help keep them cool and dry on-pitch."

A kit made for pennies in Chinese sweatshops to celebrate the Mancunian cotton industry...that was put out of business by cheap imports from places like China. United are so detached from Manchester that they can't even be bothered to get the full facts and once again make themselves look like idiots.