DOTM May 2026: Football for the Footballers! T-shirt

Our Design of the Month for May 2026, made of 100% organic cotton, and supporting grassroots labour unions in South Asia. 

This month's design is inspired by the May 1968 occupation of the French Football Federation in Paris. On 22 May 1968, as strikes swept across France, a group of footballers did something extraordinary: they occupied the headquarters of the French Football Federation and hung a banner from the balcony reading "Le football aux footballeurs!" (French for: Football belongs to the footballers, or Football to the Footballers).

The protesters accused the Federation of abusing its power to enrich itself and a handful of elite clubs, while professional players were fobbed off with low wages and miserable contracts. They demanded that membership contributions be used to improve football infrastructure at every level of the game. The occupation lasted five days, and it worked! Under pressure from the players' union, the media, and prominent footballing figures, the Federation was forced to withdraw its most controversial plans and gradually open up greater participation in the running of the game at both national and local level.

More than half a century later, football is still governed by officials and suits rather than the players themselves. Worse still: today's top officials are richer, the corruption more brazen, and the impunity more staggering than ever. The global governing body of football has for decades operated less like a sporting institution than a criminal cartel. Bribery scandals, vote-rigging, money laundering, and officeholders enriching themselves at the expense of millions of grassroots players are the order of the day.

The design for May 2026 by Indonesian illustrator Nanu Nano shows two players in front of an imaginary international federation building. One of them, barefoot in a Brazilian jersey, embodies the beauty of the traditional game. He reminds us of a time when technique, wit, and elegance still mattered more than muscle and efficiency. The other player wears a Palestinian jersey, symbolising the resilience of ordinary and marginalised people in the face of oppression around the world. He also reminds us that the genocide committed by Israel has already claimed the lives of hundreds of Palestinian footballers; among them Suleiman al-Obeid, the "Palestinian Pelé", shot dead on 6 August 2025 while waiting for food aid alongside other civilians in the south of the Gaza Strip.

The “Football to the Footballers” design is dedicated to every child on every dusty pitch and in every alleyway around the world who dreams of becoming a professional footballer or simply wants to play. The future belongs to them, and so does football. Not to the greedy men in Zurich.

• 100% organic combed ring-spun cotton
• Fabric weight: 5.3 oz./yd.² (180 g/m²)
• Regular unisex fit
• Set-in sleeves
• 1 × 1 rib at collar
• Double-needle topstitch on the sleeves and bottom hems
• Self-fabric neck tape on the inside of the back
• The fabric of this product holds certifications for its organic cotton content under GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) and OCS (Organic Content Standard). Stanley and Stella Fair Wair Foundation-made
• Supports grassroots labour unions in South Asia through ExChains and social enterprise dna merch
• Printed in the US individually just for you, with no overproduction or waste
• Global shipping from the US
• Proceeds from this design will be donated to Zapatista solidarity organisations

Size guide