England kit goes on sale at Tesco

TESCO is to sell replica football kits, including England and Manchester United strips, probably at prices that could leave its rivals standing.

Until now, the supermarkets giant's attempts to break in to the market have been limited because it could often buy kits only on the 'grey market', where the product is supplied from overseas.

Now Tesco is believed to have secured supplies in Britain and reached agreement with a number of clubs to sell their strips.

It plans to sell kits - including those from local teams in the Premiership and Nationwide League - across a range of stores in the next few weeks.

The move follows action by the Office of Fair Trading last summer when it imposed fines totalling £18.6m on companies involved in ripping off football fans by illegally fixing the price of replica kits.

Among those fined were sportswear retailer JJB Sports, manufacturer Umbro and Manchester United football club.

The action followed a two-year investigation by the watchdog prompted by Tesco and Sainsbury's move to sell team strips at half price.

They discovered the strips could be sourced only from overseas.

A Tesco spokeswoman confirmed the plan.