How to Clean White Football Pants

Warnings

Check the directions on the label of your pants before washing.

Football pants take a beating on the field, being literarily rubbed in grass, dirt and sometimes blood. Stains can form along with a buildup of sweat and general body odor. Since most football uniforms are made of polyester, heat should be avoided in washing the pants. Heat can cause polyester to shrink, not to mention making stains very difficult to get out. Polyester should be treated almost as a delicate fabric, although it is very durable which makes it ideal for sportswear (see references 1).

Take out any pads in the pants that are removable. Washing them with the pads in is likely to ruin the pads. Because the pads can be delicate you may want to get them professionally washed, but in the meantime you can spray them with a mixture of vinegar and water or an antibacterial clothes cleaning spray (references 3).

Check the pants for stains. Apply prewash spot treatment, hydrogen peroxide, a laundry detergent containing bleach, or vinegar directly to the stain. Rub the solution in; you can use a brush or a cloth, if you like. Let the solution sit for 10 to 15 minutes. Do not mix all of the ingredients together but try them separately to see what works (see references 2).

Wash the pants in the washing machine using cool water and the laundry detergent containing bleach. The pants need to be washed separately to prevent clothes bleeding on them or wrinkling from being overcrowded. Set the washer for delicate or permanent press and use the lowest spin cycle. Putting polyester through the spin cycle may cause wrinkling (see references 1).

Reexamine the area that contained the spot. If the stain is still present repeat Step 2, maybe trying a different method. Sometimes it takes a little bit of work with the same product to get it to take all of the stain out. Do not dry the pants with any spots present.

Hang dry the pants in a cool, shaded place to avoid the damaging heat from the dryer and sun. The regular wrinkles will come out of the clothes while hanging. If there are any wrinkles that refuse to come out through hanging, you can try ironing very carefully to avoid creating any melting or holes (see references 1).