The tradition of exchanging football jerseys after matches has been part of the game of soccer for 80 years and it seems appropriate the first swap was after a game between two intense rivals. FIFA says the shirt swapping started following a 1931 match between, of all nations, France and England.
In 1931 France didn't have a Thierry Henry or a Zinedine Zidane and were often defeated by the more experienced English but after scoring 5 goals on that day and managing to beat their rivals the victorious French were so pleased they wanted to commemorate the game. They sent a request over to the English dressing room for a jersey exchange and a football tradition was born.
1954 World Cup in Switzerland Began Regular World Cup Jersey Exchanges
For years the tradition was practiced only sporadically. The 1954 World Cup in Switzerland was the first that featured the shirt exchanges and they have taken place at every World Cup since as well as after other international matches and even after important games in other play.
