Russell Westbrook’s brand dresses Leeds United The English club’s capsule collection with Honor The Gift draws inspiration from both organisations’ ties to their respective communities

Russell Westbrook, the former NBA star and future Hall of Famer, has designed a collection for a Premier League club: Leeds United. The Whites and Honor The Gift, the brand founded nine years ago by the former California basketball player, have collaborated on a four-piece capsule combining the Los Angeles label’s workwear references with the West Yorkshire club’s yellow and blue colours. Behind the collaboration is an existing connection: Westbrook has been among Leeds’ investors for several years through 49ers Enterprises, alongside several other major names from American sport.

The Honor The Gift x Leeds United collection

A short-sleeved polo shirt, a denim jacket, a scarf and a beanie: the capsule collection begins with a relatively essential wardrobe combining workwear with accessories associated with the matchday experience. As Westbrook himself explained, the meeting point lies in the strong working-class influences found in the cultures of Leeds and Los Angeles.

Blue and yellow run throughout the collection, with logos, patches and lettering bringing the identities of the two brands together. The cotton polo shirt, and especially the denim jacket, express the more lifestyle-oriented side of the collaboration. The latter stands out thanks to its corduroy collar, the large print featuring the club’s initials on the back and the words “INNER CITY” across the chest. The fringed scarf and striped beanie, meanwhile, connect with the visual language of supporters in the stands.

“I wanted to bring two communities together around one team”. This is how Westbrook described the collaboration, presenting it as a connection between Honor The Gift’s inner-city roots and Leeds’ local pride. Several first-team players appear in the launch campaign, including captain Ethan Ampadu, formerly of Venezia, as well as Joe Rodon and Brenden Aaronson.

Westbrook’s brand and his role at Leeds

Founded in 2017, Honor The Gift grew out of Westbrook’s experience in Los Angeles and the neighbourhoods and communities where he was raised. The former NBA player, who is also the brand’s creative director, recently told Highsnobiety that he works on its collections throughout the year with one clear objective: “To create something that is accessible, but also cool”. The brand therefore operates at the point of balance between accessible pricing and carefully selected materials, with the aim of producing clothing that can be purchased by the urban communities it addresses.

The Leeds capsule is not Honor The Gift’s first venture into sports merchandise. The brand’s move into this world already had a precedent: the After Hours collection created in 2024 with the Los Angeles Rams, the NFL franchise. With Leeds, however, the creative relationship is also accompanied by an ownership connection.

In July 2023, Westbrook announced his investment in the group led by 49ers Enterprises, the investment arm connected to the San Francisco 49ers. Three years ago, the group took full control of the English club by acquiring Andrea Radrizzani’s stake. The collaboration with Honor The Gift has now given Westbrook’s involvement an aesthetic form, bringing “Russ” and his signature into the wardrobes of Leeds supporters.