THE JOURNAL
Venezia FC International 22/23 away kit. Photograph by Mr Alessandro Simonetti, courtesy of Venezia FC
Over the past decade, the football shirt has become a wardrobe staple that transcends fandom. Every four years (when a World Cup is approaching), you can clearly see the influence the beautiful game exerts on fashion by the plethora of kit-inspired looks that are sent down the runway. We all remember Koché’s beautiful patchwork dress made out of reclaimed Paris Saint-Germain shirts in 2017 or Balenciaga’s £700 take on Borussia Dortmund’s neon yellow kit from the 1990s. Martine Rose is also no stranger to the trend either, having recently released a mule-like Nike Shox designed for women footballers, after repeatedly including avant-garde jerseys in its collections. It is probably streetwear pioneers, such as Patta, that most authentically collaborate with sportswear giants to release capsules that send collectors wild.
Once a symbol of a supporter’s deep passion for a club, these polyester shirts have been destigmatised and fully integrated into the fashion discourse, which makes it hard to distinguish true fans from fashionistas. A key turning point in the relationship between fashion and football was the release of one of the most talked about kits in the history of the game: the Naija kit designed for the Nigeria national team at the 2018 World Cup.
As a consequence of the glamourisation of athletic garments, the resale market has boomed. It is now a multi-billion-pound industry, led by businesses such as Classic Football Shirts and Cult Kits. It has become harder and harder to come across rare memorabilia for an affordable price and even botched replicas sell out fast.
If the fashion industry has been steadily harnessing the commercial power of football and using it to its advantage, international clubs, driven by an Americanisation of the sport, seem finally to have woken up to the opportunity to expand their brand. Clubs from the most disparate international leagues, from Arsenal to AC Milan to Barça and most notably Venezia FC, have flipped the script on who drives the conversation on style and football shirts. They are now behaving like fashion houses, planning and executing collaborations with brands that had previously used them on their moodboards.
In 2019, brokered by Mr Héctor Bellerín, a man who has a foot in both the fashion and football worlds, Arsenal partnered with the Los Angeles-based 424 for its formalwear and the 2020/21 home kit. Last spring, Real Madrid cemented its long-term partnership with the Japanese designer Mr Yohji Yamamoto’s Y-3 by launching a special collection and kit in celebration of its 120th anniversary.
Kit reveals have become events that are just as important as the signing of a new player. Aspirational photoshoots styled and shot by fashion’s favourites are produced in support of the launch to capture the attention of a wide variety of fans, some of whom have never attended a football match.
RSC Anderlecht x Arte x Joma 22/23 jersey. Photograph courtesy of Arte
Venezia FC is perhaps the best example of this. It has gone from being an unknown fourth division club to being nicknamed “the most fashionable football team in the world” in just six years. Mr Ted Philipakos is the team’s CMO and headed up its design renaissance. “For our club, we’ve been up and down through the leagues for 114 years,” he says. “But we think our identity and importance should be concrete. The shirt is something prominent enough that it can communicate a certain standard of quality and style.”
Despite their dalliances with the world of fashion, Venezia and other teams like it have not forgotten how sacred football kits are to their core fans. The Antwerp label Arte was commissioned by Belgium’s most prominent club, RSC Anderlecht – where the Belgian international Mr Romelu Lukaku began his career – to design a retro-looking gradient kit in the club colours. The partnership, debuted during a gala match against Olympique Lyonnais, was based on shared values and a commitment to community.
“Football is about more than 90 minutes on the field,” says Mr Bertony da Silva, the label’s founder. “It’s a culture that lives and connects far beyond the pitch, across different countries and continents even. That is its power. And what better visible tool is there to express one’s affinity to a team or club than through a well-designed kit?”
Typically powered by the club’s technical sponsor, this profitable on-the-pitch revolution may still be in its early stages, but it is growing swiftly. The competition among clubs has spilled beyond who scores the most goals. It is about who has the best kit, too.
“If the football jersey is worn like a fashion item, it only makes sense for the football clubs to start presenting them as one as well”
With Paris Saint-Germain leading the way, another Parisian team is making waves. Red Star FC is the city’s second most relevant team. Creatively helmed by the former Manchester United striker Mr David Bellion, the club hooked up with the Amsterdam clothing label Lack Of Guidance to deliver next season’s strip.
“It’s important for clubs to release kits that are wearable off the pitch because they aren’t just a jersey you play football in any more,” says Mr Akaar Amin, Lack Of Guidance’s co-founder. “The football jersey is something many wear on a daily basis – to the club, to a festival, to work, to a restaurant. So, if the football jersey is worn like a fashion item, I think it only makes sense for the football clubs to start presenting them as one as well.”
As this strategy trickles down to lower leagues, we must take a step back and mention a pioneer, somebody who was ahead of his time. The Belgian designer Mr Dirk Bikkembergs not only based his whole brand on the beautiful game, in 2005 he purchased FC Fossombrone, a tiny club that played in Eccellenza, Italy’s fifth division, and renamed it to match his label.
Bikkembergs didn’t have much success on the pitch, but he excelled in style and creative performance. In the mid-2000s (and until recently), Fossombrone was the only club to have its players be part of fashion presentations hosted at the stadium and have its kit designed and produced by the owner of the team. Even their football boots matched the rest of the kit.
As we sit back and watch the trend unfold further, we can’t help but think that football clubs are the streetwear brands of the future.