On the Intersection of Fashion and Sports

On the first Monday in May, people from a multitude of backgrounds gather at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City for the Met Gala. The event raises money for the Met’s Costume Institute. It’s fashion’s biggest night of the year; you could call it the Super Bowl of design and celebrities. And Super Bowl stars showed up and showed out for it this year—Jalen Hurts and Bry Burrows turned heads on the carpet. Champions from all sports graced the blue carpet. Simone Biles and Jonathan Owens, a football player, stunned. Athletes on the champion New York Liberty team, including Sabrina Ionescu and Breanna Stewart, rocked high-fashion ensembles. Serena and Venus Williams also turned heads with timeless styles. The Met Gala is the who’s who of fashion statements, even those whose backgrounds are in sports. 

On the other hand, the Met Gala of football is the Super Bowl itself, when players put on their best suits for walking in and out of practice facilities and events throughout the week. Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce wore a rust-colored Amiri suit to make his grand entrance to the game. Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Devonta Smith wore a Brian Alexander Bespoke monochrome red suit for his walk-in outfit. Or perhaps the Met Gala of football is the NFL Draft, when draftees put on the best of the best luxury suits for the biggest night of their lives, including Ashton Jeanty, sixth overall pick, who wore a deep red Brian Alexander Bespoke suit paired with Swarovski-encrusted Crocs. 

For American Olympic athletes, luxury brand Ralph Lauren even dressed the stars for the opening ceremonies. 

The WNBA draft or their All-Star Game is like the Met Gala of women’s basketball. And the MLB’s Met Gala is their All-Star Game. You can find Just N Life’s coverage of the WNBA All-Star carpet here and the MLB All-Star carpet here. 

In the biggest moments of these athletes’ lives, they dress to impress. These events give athletes a platform and an opportunity to showcase their personalities, fashion abilities, and causes important to them. 

But when athletes play their game, they must wear uniforms, outfits regulated down to their socks. In fact, some leagues fine players who stray too far from their uniform. The NFL notably fines over $5,000 for minute reasons like sock length and cleat color. Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill was fined $7,000 in 2023 for not wearing socks during a game. William Gay, a cornerback turned Washington Commanders assistant coach, was fined over $5,000 in 2015 for wearing purple cleats to raise awareness for domestic violence in memory of his mother. But, over the years, the league allowed players to change their on-field accessories for a few games each season without the risk of a fine. In 2016, the My Cause My Cleats campaign was launched, and players could choose customized cleats to wear on-field during specific games. This year, for example, safety Andre Cisco wore cleats dedicated to the Jacksonville Arts and Music School. 

Meanwhile, some leagues allow more leeway for what athletes can wear during games. For example, MLB players commonly wear chains and jewelry alongside their uniforms (within reason, restricting anything that would pose harm to players). Atlanta Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr. typically wears two or three chains during a game. There are other traditional uniform changes allowed for the expression of personality: While players must wear a solid colored undershirt, within the team’s colors, traditionally, players can wear pink undershirts to honor their moms on Mother’s Day. Meanwhile, players must wear a belt but can personalize their belts—Minnesota Twins centerfielder Harrison Bader wears a Jewish star imprinted on his belt loops to honor his heritage. 

MLB equipment, on the other hand, must adhere to a bit of a stricter set of rules: Players must get permission from the league before using more interesting bat colors or designs, for example. And in 2019, the league permitted players to wear even more colorful cleats on the field. Alternatively, the only restrictions on glove colors are that pitchers cannot wear exclusively white or gray gloves, while position players can wear whatever color they want. For example, people on the Internet compare the Philadelphia Phillies’ relief pitcher Matt Strahm’s face to Nicolas Cage’s. Because of this, Strahm got a glove that has the Declaration of Independence on it. 

In non-team sports, like tennis, players can show off their personality outside of uniforms. Naomi Osaka made waves wearing a Yoon Ahn green tennis skirt with a giant bow at the 2024 U.S. Open.

Athletes make these fashion choices to show off their personalities or reflect parts of their lives off the court. Bam Adebayo, of the Miami Heat, has been seen wearing the Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson’s shoes, the Nike A’Ones. That came right around the time the couple officially announced they are in a relationship.

But athletes showing off their personalities via fashion statements isn’t just so fans can know more about them as people. These statements can lead to brand deals. With the change in Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) rules for NCAA athletes, they now have the ability to secure brand deals. That’s the way student athletes can make money while being full-time student-athletes. Once those athletes graduate and join professional leagues, they are able to bring those NIL deals with them. While he was still playing at Duke, Jared McCain gained attention for painting his nails in Duke colors. Because of this, he entered into a deal with nail polish brand Sally Hansen—the brand’s first NIL deal. After his first year at Duke, he declared for the draft and was drafted sixteenth overall by the Philadelphia 76ers. That Sally Hansen deal is still going strong—in fact, he just visited Sally Hansen headquarters to see how the polish is made.

Most commonly, athletes can secure deals with shoe and athletic apparel companies. A’ja Wilson’s shoe, the Nike A’Ones, not only graced the Miami Heat’s games but has also been rocking the sports world as of late. Even her former South Carolina coach, Dawn Staley, rocked a pair recently. Chicago Sky star Angel Reese has a multi-year contract with Reebok stemming from an NIL deal made when she was still in college at Louisiana State University. 

Beyond just the personal impact on the athletes, athletic and athlete fashion is a pure example of why and how representation matters. As Reese’s popularity grew towards the end of her college career at LSU and her entrance into the WNBA, little girls attended games wearing Reese’s signature look: a compression sleeve on only one leg, honoring A’ja Wilson and Te’a Cooper.

This year, the first overall 2025 WNBA draft pick and UCONN star Paige Bueckers’ signature hairstyle, two small braids into a ponytail, also showed up on the heads of UCONN fans. 

Fans, especially young kids, dress up like their idols by wearing their most distinctive accessories and signature items. For instance, L.A. Clippers player James Harden has very recognizable facial hair. In fact, this kid dressed up as him, down to the beard, for a 2015 game when Harden still played for the Houston Rockets.

Moreover, beyond the everyday uniforms, game-day fits give players another chance to shine. Sometimes, players use the opportunity to show off their style. During the inaugural season of Unrivaled, the 3×3 women’s basketball league, teams posted their players’ game-day fits every game. There was a designated area created specifically for these photo shoots, sponsored by Sephora.

MLB players and NFL players do the same. In fact, there’s an entire Instagram page dedicated to the style of NFL players. Odell Beckham Jr., former wide receiver for the Miami Dolphins and New York Giants, among other teams, is well-known for turning game-day fits into a personal statement. Or like DeAndre Hopkins, Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver, who arrived at the biggest game of his life, the 2025 Super Bowl, wearing his late father’s fur coat. According to ESPN, Hopkins told himself he’d wear the coat to his wedding day or the Super Bowl, whichever came first.

Sometimes players even take the chance to show off parts of their personalities unrelated to their ability to craft fashionable outfits. Mack Hollins, a Buffalo Bills wide receiver, uses game day fits to show off his humor.

So, even if you’re not a “sports person,” there’s something you can bring to the next playoff watch party or sports bar. You don’t need to memorize states to join the conversation—sometimes it’s the sneakers or statement pieces that say the most. It’s not just the stats and figures that can engage you in the conversation; it’s the style choices the world’s favorite athletes are making. You can learn more about who they are as people, not just athletic superstars, and what they care about most in the world. And those fashion statements won’t just make an appearance on the first Monday in May or on Oscar Sunday. So next time you scroll past your team’s Instagram, pay attention—the next big trend might already be on the sidelines.