Sublimation
A printing process where dye is heat-pressed into polyester fabric, becoming part of the shirt rather than sitting on top of it.
How sublimation works
Sublimation printing uses dye that turns directly from solid into gas under heat. The design is printed onto a transfer paper, then pressed onto polyester fabric at around 200°C. The dye gases bond at a molecular level with the polymer in the fabric and cool as a permanent part of the shirt.
That's why a sublimated kit can't peel, crack or fade in a normal wash — the design isn't printed on the fabric, it is the fabric.
Why football kit suppliers use it
- Lightweight — nothing physical sits on the shirt, so the fabric breathes properly.
- Unlimited colours — you can have full-shirt prints, gradients, photographs, anything that prints on paper can sublimate onto fabric.
- Cheap to produce — single-step process, no setup fees, scales well to small runs.
- Long-lasting — typically outlasts the shirt itself.
The trade-off
Sublimation only works on polyester (or polyester-blend) fabrics. It can't print onto cotton, and the fabric must be light-coloured for the dye to show — you can't sublimate a white logo onto a black shirt directly (you'd need a different process or a light underbase).
Visually, sublimated badges look like prints because they are. From a few metres they're indistinguishable from an off-the-shelf replica. Up close, a printed crest reads as printed — which is why some clubs upgrade to siliconeor holographic finishes for the badges themselves.
Sublimation at Peaq
Every Peaq kit is sublimated as the base finish — included in the £30 per-player price. Crest, sponsor and any pattern work is sublimated. The optional silicone or holographic upgrades sit on top of the sublimated base, replacing only the badges, not the underlying print.
Read more: Sublimation vs silicone vs holographic — which finish wins under floodlights?