diff --git a/openfut-utas-host/src/config.rs b/openfut-utas-host/src/config.rs
index 184caf8..4847a49 100644
--- a/openfut-utas-host/src/config.rs
+++ b/openfut-utas-host/src/config.rs
@@ -59,6 +59,22 @@ pub struct HostConfig {
     /// Disabled by default. Non-off values require three explicit staging guards;
     /// see [`parse_sbc_post_commit_fault`].
     pub sbc_post_commit_fault: SbcPostCommitFault,
+    /// Emit the club's active club items in `squad.actives`. **Disabled by
+    /// default.**
+    ///
+    /// `actives` is the proven carrier that makes a kit resident (the squad
+    /// parser writes each element straight into a club-item slot), and with it
+    /// populated the pre-match kit selector works. But a non-empty array was
+    /// observed to cost the rest of the squad: the resident item map dropped from
+    /// 24 entries to just the 2 kits, the 23-slot player vector came back fully
+    /// null, and the starting-11 screen was empty. `actives` sorts first in the
+    /// object, so everything after it — `players`, `manager`, `captain`,
+    /// `formation` — is lost.
+    ///
+    /// Off until that interaction is understood: an empty squad is far worse than
+    /// a missing kit. Env `OPENFUT_FIFA17_SQUAD_ACTIVES=1` to experiment on
+    /// staging.
+    pub squad_actives: bool,
 }
 
 #[derive(Debug)]
@@ -177,6 +193,15 @@ impl HostConfig {
             clientdata_path,
             account_path,
             sbc_post_commit_fault,
+            // Default OFF: see the field docs. Only an explicit 1/true/on enables it.
+            squad_actives: matches!(
+                env::var("OPENFUT_FIFA17_SQUAD_ACTIVES")
+                    .unwrap_or_default()
+                    .trim()
+                    .to_ascii_lowercase()
+                    .as_str(),
+                "1" | "true" | "on" | "yes"
+            ),
         })
     }
 }
diff --git a/openfut-utas-host/src/lib.rs b/openfut-utas-host/src/lib.rs
index ce526d8..abcacba 100644
--- a/openfut-utas-host/src/lib.rs
+++ b/openfut-utas-host/src/lib.rs
@@ -2652,6 +2652,8 @@ pub struct SquadDeps<'a> {
     pub core: &'a dyn CoreAccess,
     pub resolver: &'a Fifa17IdentityResolver,
     pub entities: &'a Fifa17Entities,
+    /// Emit `squad.actives`. Default OFF — see [`crate::config::HostConfig`].
+    pub squad_actives: bool,
 }
 
 /// Secret-free structured log line for a handled squad request.
@@ -2750,23 +2752,33 @@ fn project_active_squad(deps: &SquadDeps<'_>) -> HostProjection {
         manager,
     };
     // The active club designations Core already owns (`/club/active-items`), shaped
-    // into the `actives` array the client needs to make a club item resident. A
-    // transport error here is non-fatal and yields no actives: the squad still
-    // renders, exactly as it did before this array was populated. It is reported,
-    // because silently empty actives is precisely the failure that left the
-    // pre-match kit selector blank.
-    let actives = match deps.core.get_active_kits() {
-        Ok(assignments) => squad_actives(
-            &owned_by_id,
-            deps.resolver,
-            ActiveKitAssignments {
-                home: assignments.home_owned_card_id.as_deref(),
-                away: assignments.away_owned_card_id.as_deref(),
-            },
-        ),
-        Err(error) => {
-            eprintln!("utas-host WARN active club items unavailable, squad.actives empty: {error}");
-            json!([])
+    // into the `actives` array that makes a club item resident.
+    //
+    // DEFAULT OFF (`HostConfig::squad_actives`). Populating this array does make
+    // the kits resident and the pre-match selector work, but it was also observed
+    // to cost the rest of the squad: the resident item map fell from 24 entries to
+    // just the 2 kits, the 23-slot player vector came back fully null, and the
+    // starting-11 screen was empty. `actives` sorts first in the squad object, so
+    // everything after it is lost. Until that is understood an empty squad is far
+    // worse than a missing kit.
+    let actives = if !deps.squad_actives {
+        json!([])
+    } else {
+        match deps.core.get_active_kits() {
+            Ok(assignments) => squad_actives(
+                &owned_by_id,
+                deps.resolver,
+                ActiveKitAssignments {
+                    home: assignments.home_owned_card_id.as_deref(),
+                    away: assignments.away_owned_card_id.as_deref(),
+                },
+            ),
+            Err(error) => {
+                eprintln!(
+                    "utas-host WARN active club items unavailable, squad.actives empty: {error}"
+                );
+                json!([])
+            }
         }
     };
     match project_squad(&input, deps.resolver, deps.entities) {
@@ -3557,6 +3569,8 @@ pub struct Server {
     economy_gate: Arc<Mutex<()>>,
     /// Staging-only simulation of losing the successful SBC submit receipt.
     sbc_post_commit_fault: SbcPostCommitFault,
+    /// Emit `squad.actives`. Default OFF; see `HostConfig::squad_actives`.
+    squad_actives: bool,
 }
 
 impl Server {
@@ -3581,6 +3595,7 @@ impl Server {
             clientdata: Arc::new(ClientDataStore::open(ephemeral_clientdata_path())),
             economy_gate: Arc::new(Mutex::new(())),
             sbc_post_commit_fault: SbcPostCommitFault::Off,
+            squad_actives: false,
             current_match: Arc::new(PlMutex::new(None)),
         }
     }
@@ -3649,6 +3664,10 @@ impl Server {
             "utas-host sbc_post_commit_fault={:?}",
             cfg.sbc_post_commit_fault
         );
+        eprintln!(
+        "utas-host squad_actives={} (OFF keeps squad.actives empty; ON makes kits resident but has been seen to empty the squad)",
+        cfg.squad_actives
+    );
         Ok(Server::new(
             core,
             entities,
@@ -3659,7 +3678,8 @@ impl Server {
         .with_economy(economy)
         .with_clientdata(clientdata)
         .with_account(account)
-        .with_sbc_post_commit_fault(cfg.sbc_post_commit_fault))
+        .with_sbc_post_commit_fault(cfg.sbc_post_commit_fault)
+        .with_squad_actives(cfg.squad_actives))
     }
 
     /// Assemble the shared squad dependencies (Core access + the one production
@@ -3669,6 +3689,7 @@ impl Server {
             core: self.core.as_ref(),
             resolver: self.resolver.as_ref(),
             entities: self.entities.as_ref(),
+            squad_actives: self.squad_actives,
         }
     }
 
@@ -3694,6 +3715,14 @@ impl Server {
         self
     }
 
+    /// Emit `squad.actives`. Default OFF: a populated array makes the kits
+    /// resident but was observed to cost the rest of the squad (see
+    /// `HostConfig::squad_actives`).
+    fn with_squad_actives(mut self, on: bool) -> Self {
+        self.squad_actives = on;
+        self
+    }
+
     fn with_sbc_post_commit_fault(mut self, fault: SbcPostCommitFault) -> Self {
         self.sbc_post_commit_fault = fault;
         self
diff --git a/openfut-utas-host/tests/economy_integration.rs b/openfut-utas-host/tests/economy_integration.rs
index 8bc9035..5ee95b6 100644
--- a/openfut-utas-host/tests/economy_integration.rs
+++ b/openfut-utas-host/tests/economy_integration.rs
@@ -902,6 +902,7 @@ fn from_config(base: &str, dir: &std::path::Path) -> openfut_utas_host::config::
             .to_string_lossy()
             .into_owned(),
         sbc_post_commit_fault: openfut_utas_host::config::SbcPostCommitFault::Off,
+        squad_actives: false,
     }
 }
 
diff --git a/openfut-utas-host/tests/host_test.rs b/openfut-utas-host/tests/host_test.rs
index e18844f..59f74a4 100644
--- a/openfut-utas-host/tests/host_test.rs
+++ b/openfut-utas-host/tests/host_test.rs
@@ -1150,6 +1150,7 @@ fn put_full_replacement_commits_canonical_and_extension_and_acks_id0() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     let body = put_body(
         "f442",
@@ -1192,6 +1193,7 @@ fn put_assigns_the_owned_manager_and_a_later_save_clears_it() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
 
     let with_manager = put_body(
@@ -1234,6 +1236,7 @@ fn put_saves_the_squad_when_the_manager_ref_does_not_resolve() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
 
     let body = put_body(
@@ -1279,6 +1282,7 @@ fn put_rejects_wire_id_owned_by_another_profile_core_unchanged() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     let body = put_body(
         "f442",
@@ -1305,6 +1309,7 @@ fn put_rejects_unknown_wire_id() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     // 999_999_999 was never allocated → unresolvable.
     let body = put_body(
@@ -1330,6 +1335,7 @@ fn put_rejects_duplicate_owned_item() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     let body = put_body(
         "f442",
@@ -1355,6 +1361,7 @@ fn put_core_failure_returns_error_never_python() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     let body = put_body("f442", w["oc-a"], &[(0, w["oc-a"], 1)], "[]", None);
     let (resp, log) = handle_put_squad(&body, &deps);
@@ -1372,6 +1379,7 @@ fn repeated_identical_put_is_idempotent() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     let body = put_body(
         "f442",
@@ -1408,6 +1416,7 @@ fn coupled_read_after_write_list_and_usermassinfo_agree() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     let body = put_body(
         "f442",
@@ -1513,6 +1522,7 @@ fn squad_active_serves_core_backed_object_with_configured_persona() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     // Commit a squad so Core has a fresh canonical squad + extension.
     let body = put_body(
@@ -1560,6 +1570,7 @@ fn read_path_is_bounded_no_per_slot_lookup() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     let body = put_body(
         "f442",
@@ -1614,6 +1625,7 @@ fn stale_extension_is_not_applied_on_reads() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     let (resp, log) = handle_squad_list(&deps);
     assert_eq!(log.outcome, "stale_integrity");
@@ -1635,6 +1647,7 @@ fn missing_extension_is_explicit_on_reads() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     let (resp, log) = handle_squad_list(&deps);
     assert_eq!(log.outcome, "missing_integrity");
@@ -1656,6 +1669,7 @@ fn usermassinfo_never_serves_python_squad_on_integrity_failure() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     let py_body = json!({
         "userInfo": {"personaId": 7},
@@ -1730,6 +1744,7 @@ fn duplicate_definition_instances_stay_distinct_through_host() {
         core: &core,
         resolver: &resolver,
         entities: &ent,
+        squad_actives: false,
     };
     let body = put_body(
         "f442",