Squadra represent everything good about the football shirt space. It's a firm defined by the details who really know the ins and outs of football shirt history. Squadra's founder, Josh, is also one of the most authentic people we've met since starting Showboat. He's also one of the soundest. We're buzzing to have Squadra's shirt collection on the Showboat marketplace and to be partnering with Josh.
How did you first get into football shirts? What was your journey into this world?
I’ve always been into football. I grew up on it. Sky Sports, the Wenger and Ferguson era, Mourinho coming through. That was my childhood.
My dad was also really into classic menswear. Stone Island, Adidas, proper heritage stuff. When I was younger, he used to give me books to read in the car while he was driving, books about Adidas shoes, region-specific releases, the history behind them. I was probably about 12 or 13 when I realised this whole world existed. That would’ve been the early 2010s.
I sort of drifted away from football for a bit when I went to university to study music. I genuinely missed entire seasons. There are years where people talk about when West Brom were most recently in the Prem, the players they had and I’m like, I didn’t see a second of that entire season.
After uni I was working at Clarks in Manchester, which I hated. They transferred me to another store an hour away and I was miserable. A friend messaged me on Instagram saying Classic Football Shirts were hiring. I sent them a very candid email, which is basically still how I write now, and they got back to me the next day.
I worked there from mid-2021 to late-2023. Mostly in the shop, but I did some social stuff too. What really hooked me again was the social side of football, making people happy, the hunt for shirts. It reminded me of reading those Adidas books as a kid. That feeling of searching.
In 2023 I had some big life changes and couldn’t stay at CFS, but I didn’t want to leave the world. So I started Squadra.
What’s been the journey of Squadra so far?
It started online. I launched the website and Instagram in August 2023. I had no idea what I was doing. I woke up on launch day and there were already four sales, from maybe 200 or 300 followers. That was massive for me.
It gave me that hit of “okay, this could be something”. Our first pop-up was December 1st, 2023. It wasn’t life-changing money, but it was enough to realise this could be sustainable.
After that I did pop-ups on and off, plus the website. I had a month-long pop-up inside another shop on Deansgate, which was amazing, but temporary. Then in 2024 the National Football Museum got in touch about having a rail in their shop. That was huge.
Since then it’s been mainly the website, the museum, and occasional events. I love pop-ups, but they can destroy your work-life balance. The website is less glamorous, more sitting on your laptop at night, but it’s better for growth. You can’t be everywhere at once.
I think I relied too much on instant cash flow from events early on, which slowed more predictable growth online.
How did you actually land those early events and pop-ups?
Honestly, just asking. Walking into places. I remember doing Manchester Uni events because I literally saw someone selling records there and asked how they got the space.
A lot of it was just messaging people, ringing numbers I got off Instagram, asking if something was possible. Some people reached out to me too. The museum did. Treacle Market in Macclesfield did.
I don’t really care about follower counts. You can have 100,000 followers, but if no one’s connected, it means nothing. I’d rather have a thousand people who actually get it. You meet those people at pop-ups.
Do you see Squadra’s future as more physical or more online?
Online first. I don’t think I’ve hit my capacity yet in terms of productivity or consistency. Once there’s a reliable base level of cash flow, then maybe you look at physical space or investment.
Physical shops are brutal. Everyone’s got their hand out. For now, concessions and the website make the most sense.
How have you built your supply network?
Following leads, taking educated guesses, trusting people. Being honest.
I don’t like undercutting people constantly. It doesn’t last. People know what things are worth now. These are pieces of sporting history. Treat people right and they’ll want to work with you again.
It’s persistence. Messaging people. Following up. Showing you actually care.
How does your personal taste align with what sells?
Honestly? It doesn’t, a lot of the time.
My wife tells me off for buying things I love too much. I’m obsessed with cult teams, weird brands, obscure eras. But most people want vintage England, United, Arsenal, Chelsea.
I love random stuff. One of my favourite pieces is a Schalke shirt with cult Bundesliga right-back Rafinha on the back. Cult brands, too. But you have to balance that with reality. The Premier League dominates for a reason.
Are we seeing demand move beyond the 90s?
Everything is fair game now. This might be controversial, but anything pre-COVID is basically vintage.
Football changes so fast now. Fabrics, designs, aesthetics. Even the 2022 World Cup already feels iconic.
People are buying shirts from bad seasons. Moyes era United. Van Gaal era United. Maybe it’s nostalgia, maybe it’s fashion, maybe it’s loyalty through the bad years. Probably all of it.
Overseas buyers will buy anything. Some don’t care about context. Others care deeply. Both exist.
What about your personal collection?
It shrank for a while when I was figuring things out. I couldn’t justify keeping stuff I didn’t wear. Now it’s growing again.
I’ve got around 50–75 shirts, maybe over 100 if you include my Mansfield ones. They’re in different wardrobes, so I forget about them.
Favourites? Germany 88. Germany 88 track jacket. Early 90s Mansfield home and away. I’ve also got a mid-90s Accra Hearts of Oak shirt from Ghana that I’ve never even seen another image of.
Is there still a grail you’re chasing?
I’ve been lucky enough to tick off most of what I thought were grails. But the truth is, it scratches the itch for five minutes and then you’re back hunting again.
If there’s one I’d never sell, it’s the Mansfield 1997–98 centenary third shirt. I believe we only wore it once. We reverted back to the original 1800s colours of claret and blue stripes with a centenary badge. Only one has ever come up for sale since I started Squadra, and I couldn’t afford it at the time.
That one hurts.
Finally, why partner with Showboat?
Honestly, because I believe in what you’re doing. I think it’s the biggest gap that’s existed in this market for a long time.
The aesthetic, the cultural overlap, the execution. Even if our interests aren’t identical, the values are. I genuinely think this could be one of the biggest football apps in the world.
If this existed when I was running myself into the ground doing events in 2023, I would’ve given anything to be part of it. So the fact that I am part of it now is massive for me.
More from The Supply
→ Read our interview with Granny's Football Store
→ Read our interview with Retro Football Shirts
→ Read our interview with Football Finery
→ Read our interview with NI Clasico
→ Explore shirts from the best suppliers in the UK on the Showboat Marketplace.
