The best 10moment of football-fashion in 2020

Remembering 2020 without the influence of the coronavirus pandemic is extremely difficult, even just thinking about sport. On the contrary, even just thinking about a more specific area such as the link between sport and fashion. There is no sport area - commercial, aesthetic, medical - that has not been affected by the pandemic. Yet the market and industry have moved on, creativity has flowed and ideas for important operations have not been extinct.

There are been many important aesthetic operations, such as Human Race x adidas, and a great rediscovery, that of the nineties, that Arsenal - even if, in reality, many have done so - has enhanced with a stunning collection. Here are the best moments when this year football has crossed paths with fashion, between the catwalks of Paris and the ateliers of Milan. 

1- Gaming

Louis Vuitton on League of Legends, adidas and Nowhere F.C. on Volta Football. But also the Gucci Garage Store and C.P. Company on FUT. 2020, perhaps also due to a dutiful amount of time spent at home, has seen a relationship with futuristic fashion foretoom, to presage as in the future, the combination of egames-luxury or esports-sportswear, will be increasingly connected. By the way, FIFA 21 has seen - through VOLTA Football - a boom in this phenomenon; PES, which has partnered with clubs, hosted the exclusive launch of AS Roma's fourth kit, a jersey designed for virtual matches. It's called "Sradicare la realtà" the Italian translation of Brain Dead's pay off.

Louis Vuitton on League of Legends, adidas and Nowhere F.C. on VOLTA Football, but also C.P. Company on FUT. 2020 has seen a relationship with definitive fashion, to foreay as in the future, the relationships between egames-luxury or esports-sportswear will be increasingly connected. In this sense, FIFA 21 has seen - through VOLTA Football - a boom of this phenomenon, and even PES, with the launch of the fourth kit of AS Roma, has shown himself to be very active. Fashion is increasingly moving into gaming and, in particular, esports seem the most active sector in this new partnership. 

2- Neymar signs for PUMA 

On 12 September 2020 Neymar Junior became the highest paid sportsman in the world by a technical sponsor: over Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi, before Lebron James and Tiger Woods. O'Ney left his personal nike supplier to move from PUMA, whose 2020 was a very smiling year - turnover tripled. Neymar receives €23 million annually from the German brand and represents PUMA in everything from football to streetwear, from leisurewear collections to gaming boots. In a very difficult year for him - so many injuries, including the recent one, and the defeat in the Champions League final - the Brazilian player has become a great entrepreneur. A great rich entrepreneur. 

3- HUMAN RACE x adidas 

Pharrell Williams launched his own fashion brand in 2016. Four years later he entered the world of football thanks to adidas, of which Pharrell Williams is the testimonial. The rapper's brand has produced the historic jerseys of Bayern Munich, Juventus, Real Madrid, Arsenal and Manchester United with a reworked design. The jerseys were worn in some cases during a match (such as Juventus) while, generally, they were seen during the warm-up in the pregame. Although this one by Human Race is an important collection, some doubts have arisen about the communicative effectiveness of this operation.

4- AC Milan partnership with Slam Jam and Roc Nation

AC Milan have invested heavily in the extra field this year, working on important partnersshi to relaunch their brand in a marketing key. The agreement with Roc Nation is certainly one of the highlights of the Rossoneri season off the field, as well as the operation with retailer Slam Jam. On the one hand there is the intention of stronger worldwide communication, entrusted to an agency, Roc Nation, which has a communication efficiency like few: it has allowed AC Milan to produce a collection with Paper Palnes, roc nation's fashion brand. The other, on the other hand, intends to connect the club more with the local fan base, giving the opportunity to dialogue with the Milanese fans by proposing, in the Slam Jam store, a point of AC Milan.

5- Balenciaga at Paris Faswhion Week 2020

In March, during the Paris FW, the luxury brand Balenciaga paraded with a football team, Balenciaga Football Club. Obviously the team does not exist, it is fictitious, but the clothes worn were those of a real football team, complete with Soccer Sneakers at the feet. Balenciaga's collection was a collection entirely dedicated to football and its vintage heritage, with references to the jerseys of the last decades of the twentieth century, more references to the outfits of the referees and the jerseys of the first two thousand. 

6- AS Roma x Brain Dead

A fundamental moment in the relationship between fashion and gaming was December, when AS Roma, first in an online version and then also available for physical purchase, launched the fourth kit in collaboration with Brain Dead. The jersey is beautiful, made with the colors of AS Roma and the old yellow and red logo, and was produced for virtual use on eFootball PES of the official gamer team of the club - as well as being able to be selected during normal matches. In this case, RomaxBraind Dead anticipated the real world with an exclusively virtual edition, which in fact, is only made available in limited edition for the physical commerce.

7- Arsenal's adidas Retro Collection

With a fantastic video Arsenal presented a retrocollection (signed adidas) inspired by the models of the jerseys of the early Nineties. A nostalgic set that reflects a case seen many times in 2020, but that actually dominates the football aesthetics for a couple of years. References to the templates of the last century were among the most popular in this period, not least because for many teams - such as Arsenal or Borussia Dortmund - they represented winning football seasons. adidas, in particular, is working very carefully with Arseneal, and in general, this season's products from the German brand for the Gunners are of great quality.

8- Rashford pose for Burberry

Marcus Rashford has become an important football figure this season: he has been knighted in the British Order. In November, Burberry chose him as the testimonial of the FW 2020 campaign, one of the most elegant football-fashion moments of 2020. For Rashford, this has been a crucial year for his public image, with worldwide popularity also thanks to his membership in Roc Nation. Burberry chose him, as a top-tier player on the pitch and man image outside. The British brand created a  mural in Manchester with images from that campaign. 

9- Patta x Umbro

Patta has always had a certain interest in football, and this year he highlighted it with two beautiful collections dedicated to as many important teams in Europe. First one in October with the Patta x UMBRO 95 and then one later with  Patta x UMBRO '94: the first dedicated to Ajax F.C., the other to Inter Milan. The nerazzurri collection was presented in the Patta Store in Milan in the Missori district. These two works by Patta were two central collections in the football-fashion bond, although they did not directly involve the clubs.

10- Bellerin designer for PUMA x Kid Super 

In 2020 of the football-fashion relationship, Hector Bellerin cannot have played a top moment. In fact, the Arsenal full-back will surely have enjoyed designing the PUMA Super Kings in collaboration with Kid Super. In October, in fact, the Spanish player worked together with the New York collective for playing shoes in two versions, a white pair and a black one. The upper has an original and youthful design. PUMA Super Kings can be considered as signature shoes in all respects. If they are Hector Bellerin's, then, the most different player of these years, then they are something to remember. Bellerin has become a benchmark in fashion and climate engagement in recent months. The collaboration with PUMA joins his role as art director for VOLTA Football of EA Sports, and is a further sign of his interest in fashion.