In yet another sentence we never thought we’d write, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has apologised for wearing Adidas Sambas in a recent interview, after which plenty of owners promptly put them in the cupboard never to be worn again.
We shouldn’t be this petty but we can never look at the classic Adidas trainer the same ever again.
Now, we’re not particularly political here at The Manc but we don’t think it needs too much as to why seeing your nation’s leader (and a pretty unpopular one at that) wearing the same shoes as you doesn’t exactly make you feel like a style icon.
Sunak was snapped wearing the trainers along with his usual suit shirt and trousers (already a bad start) in a recent interview at Downing Street, which led to a flood of deeply frustrated and undeniably funny memes in its wake.
While we’ve definitely enjoyed it as a social media moment, we are truly saddened that one wear from Rishi Sunak and it seems the appeal of Sambas, shoes which GQ labelled an “eternally cool sneaker”, is now in the toilet all for what they called a “bid to present himself as young and hip”.
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However, after his PR team clearly let him on to the social media uproar, the Prime Minister has since spoken out with a stereotypical politician response you could imagine.
Addressing the situation on an LBC radio show this week, the 43-year-old said: “I issue a fulsome apology to the Samba community. But, in my defence, I would say I have been wearing Adidas trainers including Sambas – and others, in fact – for many, many years.
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“The first pair my brother got for me many, many years ago – my first pair of fun Adidas trainers as a Christmas present. I haven’t looked back since. So I’ve been a longtime devotee.” Spoken like a man who has never worn or maybe even seen a pair of these in his life.
It still hasn’t done him much good though as all seems to be too little too late for the iconic pair of kicks as even the reactions to his obviously somewhat tongue-in-cheek apology have been ones of fury, disappointment and everything in between.
The Guardian recognised this common pair of white, suede and gum Adidas Sambas as “this year’s coolest shoes – until Rishi Sunak got a pair”, while another remarked: “Seeing Rishi in Adidas Sambas has killed any last desire to buy them”.
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Even those who were never big fans of the shoe that has often been accused of being part of the ‘hipster uniform’ over the year or so have now been left torn as to how it may have been killed off. We’re lovers of the brand and the style around the world will try and keep it alive but for the UK, it might be curtains.
Fashion trends come and go, that’s the nature of the beast, but no trainer as classic as this should have to go out in such a cruel way. We might be laughing on the outside but believe us, we’re crying on the inside. Hope you’re happy with yourself, Rishi.
In all seriousness, please just go back to the usual sh*t-flickers – it’s somehow less unsettling than you in a pair of Sambas.
Police seize an estimated £6m worth of counterfeit goods from Rochdale industrial units
Emily Sergeant
Police have seized an estimated £6 million worth of counterfeit goods from several industrial units in Rochdale.
It comes after the Trading Standards team and officers from Greater Manchester Police‘s (GMP) Rochdale Neighbourhood Policing Team attended a joint visit to a business park, at Crown Top Lane, on the afternoon of Thursday 1 May last week, following the receiving of some intelligence that an Organised Crime Gang from Cheetham Hill had extended their operation and opened another site in Rochdale.
According to GMP, the visit was part of a ‘targeted operation’ tackling organised crime in the Castleton area of Rochdale.
When police arrived on the scene, seven units containing counterfeit goods – including a range of branded sports trainers, perfumes, luxury accessories, high-end tech products, and illicit cigarettes – were all discovered.
Two men, aged 29 and 70 were present at the site, and they were subsequently arrested on suspicion of possession and control of counterfeit goods.
Police have seized an estimated £6m worth of counterfeit goods from Rochdale industrial units / Credit: GMP
They have been bailed pending further enquiries, GMP revealed.
Due to the large scale of the boxed goods, the scene was secured overnight and officers and trading standards returned the following day (Friday 2 May) with a HGV to recover all the items.
Police are now appealing to the public for information, with Inspector Anthony Taylor, from GMP’s Rochdale Neighbourhood Policing Team, explaining that it takes any intelligence submitted by the public ‘seriously’ and acts upon it ‘accordingly’.
“If you have any concerns about organised criminals operating in your area, please get in touch with us,” he concluded.
Anyone with any information is asked to contact police on 101, or via the LiveChat function on the GMP website.
Alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
Featured Image – GMP
News
The annual Manchester Remembers Foundation charity football match has shut down
Danny Jones
The annual Manchester Remembers charity football match has been cancelled for 2025, and unfortunately, the wider Foundation has also shut downfor the foreseeable.
Set up back in 2020, the Manchester Remembers charity game was created to help raise funds for the families of those lost in the tragic 2017 Manchester Arena attack, raising nearly £200,000 in donations for multiple organisations.
It has been a truly treasured community event across Greater Manchester, welcoming thousands to the likes of Manchester City Academy Stadium and Oldham Athletic‘s Boundary Park, as well as spotlighting local musicians and notable figures volunteering their help for a deeply important cause.
However, the Foundation is now set to hang up its boots. Confirming the news over the bank holiday weekend, founders Aaron Lee and Paul Corrigan shared “a difficult statement to make and a decision not taken lightly.”
— The McrRemembers Foundation™️⚽️🐝 (@McrRemembers) May 3, 2025
As explained in the lengthy and emotional post, it is with a “heavy heart” that this year’s charity match has now been officially cancelled, and tickets already purchased up to this point are now being refunded.
Having played a small part in helping spread awareness around the game and the Foundation since it began, we were gutted to learn of this sad news.
The 2025 MCR Remembers game was scheduled to take place this June at a new venue for the event, Bury FC’s home ground at Gigg Lane, but following what they have labelled “a lack of support” from Greater Manchester leaders and “influential people needed to carry the event forward.”
Lee – a former police officer turned firefighter who was one of the emergency responders on 22 May, 2017 – went on to share a follow-up video reflecting on the announcement.
As he puts in the piece to camera, he says that even if those who had been reached out to in recent times were to suddenly respond, that it is “sadly too late.”
Taking time to thank not only past sponsors, managers, ex-pros and celebrity players who have been part of the event in the past, but everyone who bought tickets to the event(s) over the past few years, stating simply: “We cant thank you enough.”
Lee, who was given both a Chief Fire Officers Commendation and British Citizen Award in 2024, went on to address those “so-called leaders and influential people” in a subsequent post, adding: “All we needed was a bit of help. But we were ignored. Thanks for the memories.”
Unsurprisingly, the comments on social media have been awash with messages of love, support and sadness upon learning of this year’s cancellation and the end of The Manchester Remembers Foundation after more than half a decade.
There is some hope, though, as he ends the video by saying, “Who knows if this is the end or not? […] I dare say we’ll be back at some point.” We can only keep our fingers crossed he’s right and the MCR Remembers charity game won’t be shut down for good.
Danny Jones -
10th April 2024 
