FROM OUR FEBRUARY ISSUE: IS THE STADIUM TUNNEL THE NEW MENSWEAR RUNWAY?

by Michael Macko Feb 13, 2024


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During the opening moments of a recent NFL pre-game show, the anchors discussed three players who all showed up for their games in different colors of a Denim Tears jacket and jeans. Two things jumped out to me: One that this was being treated as a fashion faux pas—akin to three actresses showing up on the red carpet in the same dress—and two, how the hell do these sportscasters all know about a sportswear brand, founded in 2019, that a lot of people in menswear still don’t know?

ORCHARD PARK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 01: Damar Hamlin #3 of the Buffalo Bills enters the stadium before the game against the Miami Dolphins at Highmark Stadium on October 01, 2023 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Bryan M. Bennett/Getty Images)

The tunnel walk, when players enter arenas and stadiums before competitions, has become a regular part of sports programming, inspired several Instagram accounts, connected athletes and fans, helped attract lucrative sponsorships, and highlighted the causes they support.

One of those Instagrams, @leaguefits, has over a million followers and features a weekly roundup of stadium tunnel walks and the occasional coach and courtside NBA fan. Another account, @morethanstats, has been covering where sports and fashion intersect since 2011, with more than 72 thousand followers.

NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 04: Basketball player LeBron James attends the Harlem Fashion Row at Capitale on September 4, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Jim Spellman/Getty Images)

When we look at the timeline of the sports-meets-fashion obsession, notable moments include 2005 when NBA commissioner David Stern enacted a “casual business attire” dress code for players to wear to and from games, the 2012 NBA playoffs postgame press conferences when Russell Westbrook went viral for the outfits he wore (which included eyeglass frames sans lenses), and 2018 when LeBron James gifted Thom Browne suits to all of his Cleveland Cavaliers teammates.

Joe Namath picks up his mail at the New York Jets’ camp at Hofstra University wearing a silver fox jacket and a velour shirt. Getty Images.

Perhaps we have to go back 49 years to 1974 when Joe Namath, the first athlete fashion plate, was photographed in the Jets locker room in flared denim, velour shirt, aviators, gold chains, Nike Cortez sneakers, and a knit cap. Perhaps the most surprising thing is that, minus the obvious and now out-of-touch fur coat, his look would be considered very cool today.

At top: OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – JUNE 12: Russell Westbrook #0 of the Oklahoma City Thunder answers questions after the Thunder defeat the Miami Heat 105-94 in Game One of the 2012 NBA Finals at Chesapeake Energy Arena on June 12, 2012 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.  (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)