{
  "id": 4839215,
  "title": "Man City fans used AI to design the team’s new kit",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/01/man-city-fans-used-ai-to-design-the-teams-new-kit",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-09-01T09:45:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Fast Company",
    "slug": "fast-company",
    "url": "https://www.fastcompany.com/91598957/man-city-fans-used-ai-to-design-the-teams-new-kit"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Manchester City has unveiled its first fan-designed football kit created through artificial intelligence. The team announced the new kit, which will be worn on the pitch, using Puma's AI Creator, a custom generative AI tool. Puma introduced the AI generator in December 2024 and it functions through text prompts, sliders, and customization tools for various elements like collar, colors, and badge placements. In the previous year, players Ederson, Stefan Ortega, and Rico Lewis wore an AI-generated goalie kit that featured a green color scheme with a goal net pattern. The club then opened the design tool to the public, enabling fans from over 200 countries to generate more than 180,000 unique designs, accumulating over 1.7 million votes. From a shortlist of 10 finalists, the winning design was submitted by Elliott, a longtime Manchester City fan who created the pattern during his lunch break. The design showcases a pair of vertical blue stripes with gradients, transitioning from sky blue to navy, along a white jersey. The Manchester City badge and the logos of Puma and the team's sponsor, Etihad Airways, are placed on the front. The kit is made from Puma's Ultrawave, a lightweight performance fabric. While some online critics have dismissed the kit as \"AI slop\" or unoriginal, Puma's vice president of teamsport, Dominique Gathier, believes the tool represents a new way of thinking about football kit design and the strength of the Manchester City fanbase. The process of harnessing fan creativity and building a community around the decision has turned the alternative kit into a fan experience.",
  "summary": "Manchester City’s new uniforms are the first professional kits designed by fans using AI that will be worn on a football pitch. The Premier League team announced a new fan-designed alternative kit that was made using Puma AI Creator, the German sportswear brand’s custom generative AI tool. Puma launched the AI generator in December 2024 . It’s powered by Deepobjects, an AI co-creation platform,…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}