Football crazy, fashion mad, grab a retro shirt and play football with the lads
It’s England v Germany this weekend, but the only thing I’m betting on is a hot retro shirt summer. Ok, it was wishful thinking with the weather, but classic football shirts are undoubtedly having a moment.
Dua Lipa, Rihanna, and Bella Hadid—who fronted Balenciaga’s footie-themed collaboration with Adidas in 2022—have all been sporting classic shirts.
In a recent “cute weekend” carousel on Instagram, Hailey Baldwin Bieber took a typically ‘borrowed from the boys’ approach, blending two seemingly polarising trends – blokecore and coquette (block-corequette? Blokette?)
The teammates for Baldwin Bieber’s shamrock green sports jersey, you ask? Frilly knickerbockers, white ankle socks and patent Mary Jane flats. This isn’t the beauty founder’s first dalliance with a sports jersey, either. To promote the UK launch of her brand Rhode, she donned an old school England tee (again, paired with pants), and in an Insta-dump titled “Lately” (though it was actually August last year), she styled an oversized silk sports jersey with matching shorts and heeled mules.
“I think it has a lot to do with the bloke-core trend,” says Charley Keighley, who reworks vintage football styles for the London studio KITTEN. “We seem to be keen to play with the gender norms within clothing; to start with a garment that’s innately created for and enjoyed by a very laddy cis-male audience feels like an act of rebellion. The fashion girlies are reappropriating a male classic, and I’m so here for it.”
Brands like Balenciaga, Martine Rose, and Off-White have been peddling sports-infused wares for years now, and some of the industry’s most prestigious names, like Burberry and Louis Vuitton, have cast players in their campaigns. Bukayo Saka and Son Heung-min fronted Burberry’s SS24 campaign, and at the time of writing, the heritage British label has just unveiled a new shoot starring Eberechi Eze and Phil Foden. Aries has also launched its third collaboration with Umbro, which turns 100 this year.
Stateside, soccer team Inter Miami is also having a fashion moment (no doubt down to those very wearable pink kits) with celebrities like Prince Harry, Selena Gomez, Hillary Duff, and literally all the Beckhams turning out to cheer on Lionel Messi’s team. Though, I still think the baby pink and slate grey kit is behind their success.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Kim continues to conquer the sporting world (hold your comments, please) by tapping Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham in a steamy Skims shoot, which sees the player in just his pants and ball – football, that is.
It seems fashion really *has* gone football crazy. Get in on the action with our edit of the best football shirts. Football hooligans? More like, football hooligirls, am I right?
SCORE THE BEST FOOTBALL SHIRTS
Mademe Exclusive Red Soccer T-Shirt
Ambush Black Football T-Shirt
Aries X Umbro Centenary Jersey
Balenciaga + adidas Oversized Logo-Print Striped Jersey T-Shirt
Score Draw England ’90 Home Jersey Mens
Martine Rose Mesh Sports T-Shirt
Systemarosa Vintage Samda L/s Jersey
Conner Ives The Reconstituted Shirred Football Dress
