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Fashion x Football
Football isn’t simply a case of 90 minutes on a pitch; it’s culture, heritage, and in some nations, practically a way of life. Where there is culture, there is fashion. So, over the next month, when houses are flying the St George’s cross, pub gardens are at full capacity, and fans are belting out “It’s coming home”, take a single moment to absorb the subtle nods to style ingrained within the chaos.
Jude Bellingham for Louis Vuitton, Marcus Rashford for Burberry and Declan Rice for British Vogue.
It’s not just a case of turning to the oh-so-stylish WAGs, or the impeccably-dressed celebrity guests; the clues are right there on the pitch. Take a look at the England squad for instance: Wonderkid Jude Bellingham is an ambassador for Louis Vuitton; Marcus Rashford recently starred in a Burberry campaign, and Declan Rice graced the pages of the June edition of British Vogue.
Even I myself sometimes find myself asking, why? There are quite literally hundreds of style icons within the fashion-specific space; why broaden to include sportspeople? The answer is simple; in many cases, athletes have surpassed only holding relevance within their profession, they’re A-list celebrities and front-row regulars, bridging the gap between the world of style and the world of
sport. It is by no means limited to football: Formula One has Met Gala host Sir Lewis Hamilton; tennis has the ever-experimental Naomi Osaka, and skiing has Eileen Gu, who has walked the Louis Vuitton runway. Football, however, with an estimated 3.5 billion fans across the world, certainly takes home the trophy for the most influential, as it’s not just restricted to a single player; the pitch is bursting with style.
This isn’t limited to the occasional appearance at Paris Fashion Week; their luxury partnerships have built up a considerable portion of their individual brands and evolved into a significant aspect of the sport. Take @FootballerFits for instance - an Instagram page with over 800,000 followers that churns out content regarding the fashionable side of football. Their popularity is a physical display of the interest surrounding the intersection of the two industries; it’s no longer a small, ultra-niche topic; it’s a whole phenomenon within itself.
A tell-tale sign of the two spheres colliding came when football wasn’t just embracing fashion, but designers found themselves inspired by the sport. Much like in F1 when Chanel released a Cruise Collection (2023) inspired by the Monaco Grand Prix, Football has influenced a number of houses, only amplifying its cultural relevance. Whilst the two have always been loosely connected, it was a bout of controversy that kicked things off officially. Dolce and Gabanna (who are no strangers to discourse) during their FW16 show sent a model down the runway carrying a ball and sporting an interpretation of a Napoli jersey belonging to Diego Armando Maradona, which was later ruled as an unfair commercialisation of his name, and led to the shirt never reaching shop floors. However, this didn’t stop other designers from allowing the sport to creep into their collections; they just went about things in perhaps a more reserved manner. Balenciaga by Demna FW20 featured uniforms, and Miu Miu SS21 fully merged femininity and football with a heeled version of boots worn by players.
If you were to pinpoint one particular collection, it would be Pre-Fall 2018 by Koche, as they entered a landmark collaboration with Paris Saint-Germain, marking the first official time a brand partnered with a team. The two industries were no longer just interacting with one another; they had collided, and in perfect harmony.
Although the craze extends beyond just those ultra-wealthy players with the money and influence to enter the exclusive high-fashion circles. Next time you are strolling down the street or squeezing onto a packed tube, I challenge you to take a look around. How many football shirts do you see? My prediction is at least a handful. That’s because these jerseys have surpassed mere stadium-wear and the purpose of conveying an allegiance to a certain team; they are a fully fledged fashion statement in their own right.
The trend has even got the ball rolling for micro-aesthetics such as ‘blokecore’ (which blends everyday style with football shirts), and ‘blokette’, which merged a masculine style with feminine details (and has been embraced by iconic designers such as Miuccia Prada). The birth of these highlights that football is truly a substantial influence with regards to fashion; it’s accessible to the masses, and that means everything. Sure, certain F1 or tennis figures grace the covers of magazines, but that is where the buck stops. Football has historically been a sport for the people, for the working class, and now trends are being derived which are attainable for that same audience.
There is one last set of people we’re yet to mention, and they are (or have been in the past) the most instrumental of all. The WAGs. Some love them, others loathe them, yet no matter your stance, you cannot deny their power. We’re 20 years on from the simply iconic class of 2006, headed by the likes of Victoria Beckham and Cheryl Cole, who really were responsible for the christening of the term itself. They were stylish, they were extravagant; everything you’d expect a partner of an athlete to be. The class of 2026 are perhaps more on the modest side, but you’d be a fool to underestimate the media coverage they will surely receive. Tomali Benson (girlfriend of Bukayo Saka), made waves during the 2024 Euros for her effortless looks in the stands, and with a recent collaboration with River Island, she is certainly the one to watch for style moments that are easy to re-create. Although with the revival of 2000s aesthetics, images from back in the day continue to circulate, especially with Posh Spice being more popular than ever. Whilst others see them as trivial, these women are integral to the fusion of fashion and football.
Ultimately, it’s evident that football, in many ways, is so much more than merely a sport; it’s a lifestyle, and fashion plays a widely significant role within that. From being influential within major houses, to sparking trends followed by the masses, it’s culmination with style transcends that of any other sport. With the sheer excitement surrounding the 2026 FIFA World Cup, it’s only set to amplify even further throughout the summer - just watch this space.
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