Under Armour's biggest ambassador in Italy is a trapper He's Tony Effe but you can call him tonycocazero

Opening @tonycocazero, the Instagram profile of Nicolò Rapisarda, better known as Tony Effe, the first thing that catches the eye is the profile picture featuring Francesco Totti wearing the iconic blue Kappa Italy tracksuit top from Euro 2000. The Roman rapper has always openly expressed his unconditional love for the former Roma captain, describing him in a 2025 interview during Fashion Week as the "king of Rome" and his "first love", even placing him above his own mother. In his book, he even revealed that he had received a five-year suspended sentence after trying to steal a white Moncler jacket worn by the footballer on television. The two have also worked together to promote Tony Effe's concert at the Circo Massimo last year, creating an advert in which a poster featuring Rome mayor Roberto Gualtieri is struck, mocking the rapper's exclusion from the New Year's Eve concert due to the misogynistic content of his lyrics.

Could Totti have been the one to inspire Tony Effe's new health-conscious approach? The rapper only launched his Instagram and TikTok profiles in September 2026, immediately sparking controversy over his size 26 jeans, which eventually led him to issue an apology. The new accounts focus on content that differs from his previous output, placing greater emphasis on sport and physical activity rather than luxury and excess. After all, the rapper had already become the face of Under Armour back in 2024, suggesting that the brand had anticipated this shift long before anyone else. Now, with its Italian ambassador enjoying renewed popularity, Under Armour is reaping the benefits.

Tonycocazero's fitness era follows the latest trends

Of course, his communication strategy has not exactly become that of a professional athlete. The profile's name itself plays on a fairly straightforward double entendre between Coca-Cola and cocaine, while the shifts in tone between motivational content and irony are designed to appeal to a young audience, much of which he has brought along from his music career. His following already stands at 422,000, despite many of them not necessarily being interested in fitness. Even a quick look at his latest posts reveals a distinctly mainstream approach: in one video, he joins YouTuber Ale Della Giusta in Beijing, where he gets beaten with a stick by a locally renowned Shaolin monk, following Pai Da, an ancient body-conditioning technique that has gone viral in recent years.

Personally, from a directing standpoint, the best pieces of content remain the video of him running with a pushchair, captioned "chi si ferma fa la muffa" ("those who stop get mouldy"); his message to Belgian cyclist Remco Evenepoel, "ti veniamo a prendere" ("we're coming for you"); and the picture of his legs, with veins seemingly ready to burst. The latter references an image posted by cyclist Polijanski after a stage of the Tour de France, which went viral back in 2017. Finally, an underrated post that perfectly captures his new philosophy features a photoshopped image of a baby being baptised with Coca-Cola Zero, accompanied by the inevitable all-caps caption: "NEL NOME DEL PADRE DEL FIGLIO E DELLA COCA ZERO AMEN" ("IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, THE SON AND COCA ZERO, AMEN"), followed by thousands of followers responding with their own "amen".

An unexpected shift, but one that fits both his partnership with UA and his larger-than-life persona, as well as a trend that is becoming increasingly widespread among musicians. American rapper Gunna has spoken about using sport to find mental balance following legal troubles, helping to normalise a fitness-oriented lifestyle that he has acknowledged is often less accessible to African Americans for sociocultural reasons. He, too, has become a partner of Under Armour and, in 2025, organised the Wunna Run 5K Club at Brooklyn's Prospect Park, the first in a series of running events held across the world. Staying in the North American hip-hop scene, Wiz Khalifa has become an even more influential figure in running in recent months, while in Europe Central Cee was among the first artists to share his training routines with the public. A slightly more unconventional example is French rapper and producer Rilès, who created an installation to run more than 200 kilometres on a treadmill in 24 hours.

Tony Effe's beginnings with Under Armour

The original Tony Effe was a very different character. His relationship with Under Armour began with a focus on his working-class and street roots, drawing on rap and trap culture and making boxing the central element of the campaign. The artist has said that he practised boxing when he was younger and came close to becoming an amateur boxer, although his initial interest in the sport was mainly driven by self-defence. Videos of him sparring in the ring with former fighter Giorgio Petrosyan can also be found online. Building on this background, alongside his enormous musical popularity, which had grown further through various hip-hop collaborations, Under Armour selected Tony Effe for its Italian autumn-winter 2024 sportswear campaign, Rise to Shine.

With a strong focus on the relationship between street and underground culture, the campaign's photographs and videos portrayed the rapper in suburban settings, such as a football pitch overlooking apartment blocks characterised by the brutalist architecture typical of working-class neighbourhoods. Other locations were more familiar to him, including a boxing ring and a recording studio. The collection combined traditional elements, such as the Apparition sneakers, originally launched back in 2009, and the leather Court models inspired by basketball footwear, with more innovative designs. These included the cushioned Phantom 4 sneakers, featuring modern foam technology, and, above all, the Unstoppable collection. Already presented by Under Armour in London that same year, the latter focused primarily on Storm technology, a long-lasting water-repellent treatment applied to fabrics. The result was a range of sweatshirts and trousers combining the familiar stretch and comfort of the 4-Way Stretch garments used for training with the versatility required for everyday outdoor activities.

Among Tony Effe's favourites on the online store, however, there is still a piece from the HeatGear line, designed to keep the body cool in slightly warmer temperatures. The range is largely responsible for Under Armour's famous baselayers: compression garments that fit closely around the muscles, enhancing their shape while helping regulate body temperature.

The Team Sosa project

Beyond Totti's profile picture, another detail immediately stands out when visiting Tonycocazero's Instagram account: the only page it follows is the official Team Sosa profile, which was launched in April 2026. The name itself comes from a Dark Polo Gang song and has followed Tony Effe throughout the years, eventually becoming something close to an alter ego. In the song, the two are effectively one and the same, while in Vero Tony, Vero Sosa it becomes more of an attribute. The reference draws on drug culture. Back in 2012, American rapper Chief Keef had already used the name in his song Love Sosa, borrowing it from Alejandro Sosa, the fictional character in the 1983 film Scarface, and turning it into an epithet associated with power. The term was subsequently picked up in Italy, first by Dark Polo Gang and then by Tony Effe, until it eventually became a brand in its own right.

The current project seeks to give the reference a new meaning. An official website has been launched with the mission of promoting healthy competition and discipline. Team Sosa has also released a shop in collaboration with Under Armour, featuring garments bearing the brand's logo in different shapes and colours, often in fluorescent shades. The collection remains firmly rooted in classic sportswear, with simple boxing-inspired shorts, traditional UA tracksuits and water-repellent jackets, alongside a substantial selection of baselayers.

The double collaboration with KING

Alongside the official shop, these products are also available exclusively through Italian retailer KING's online and physical stores. This is where the Team Sosa capsule collection with UA was launched, featuring six pieces designed by Tony Effe, all revolving around the brand's logo in glitter, glow-in-the-dark and reflective versions. The limited-edition selection includes a Woven Jacket from the Unstoppable collection; a heavyweight brown fleece hoodie with a silver logo on the back, paired with matching trousers and made using Fiber Shed Test technology; and two distinctive polo shirts, one white and one black, featuring an oversized logo patch in a contrasting colour.

With Tony Effe himself involved, KING also launched the Every Step Louder sportswear campaign in March 2026, focusing primarily on UA running gear. The campaign was promoted through a meet & greet with the rapper at the retailer's Turin store on 27 March, attracting a large young audience. The undisputed protagonists were the Explor Trail sneakers, inspired by the Phantom line and designed for trekking. Perhaps the most outdoor-oriented footwear among the products developed by Under Armour with Tony Effe and Team Sosa, they feature a particularly chunky silhouette, pronounced sculptural details and a ripstop upper.

The collection's Echo sneakers are considerably more modern and technical, featuring HOVR cushioning technology – two layers of foam, one inner layer wrapped in a mesh structure and an outer layer – and an adjustable fit thanks to the SlipSpeed system, which allows the heel height to be raised or lowered. The traditional touch comes from the Tech Runner, a vintage-inspired, heritage-style sneaker made from mesh and suede. The clothing selection is less adventurous, continuing to focus on Unstoppable and the usual baselayer garments. By now, however, these have become the defining features of Tony Effe's new alter ego, completing his transition from Sosa to Tonycocazero and establishing him as Under Armour's new face in Italy.