Christian Dior with Paris Saint-Germain, Giorgio Armani with Juventus, Herno with Barcelona and the newly announced Louis Vuitton x Real Madrid partnership. As we delve deeper into the beautiful game of football, high-fashion deals are diving headfirst into the world’s favorite sport.
With the latest headline being the announcement of a deal between the fashion hegemon Louis Vuitton and, arguably, the greatest football club in history: Real Madrid — designer brands are betting all of their chips (if not all, then a good amount) on the game that we all love and watch. But why? Why would fashion houses decide to enter a sport that was historically associated with the working/middle classes? Take, for example, the contrast in ticket prices between the Wimbledon final and the UEFA Champions League final. Both considered the crown-jewel of their respective sports, yet the price differences are astonishing. According to OneFootball, aftermarket tickets range from anywhere between £500 and £2,000 for a Champions League final, a mere drop in the ocean, compared to the eye-watering numbers that come with a Wimbledon ticket. As reported by Yahoo Sports, the resale prices for a Wimbledon men’s final can set you back a staggering £16,000 — and that’s among the cheapest options! So in terms of prestige, football is neither tennis nor Formula 1.
Yet, football offers something that is much more valuable, and that is global engagement. Pressures from investors amidst gloomy sales have pushed the executives for new strategies, and that is where this sport steps in. Football players are the new fashion models, and the pre-match marches are the new catwalks. Unlike traditional models, they come with an already established base of followers, offering the perfect engagement that these high fashion labels lack so much in this day and age. Additionally, they act as a perfect medium between the luxury world and the youth culture, gathering hundreds of thousands of likes from Gen Z fans who idolize the players. “The athletes of today, especially those high-profile Madrid players, are almost creatives themselves. They’re going to be posting content onto their socials wearing Louis Vuitton, taken from the players themselves on their iPhones. That makes it a player-backed brand.” says the sports journalist Daniel-Yaw Miller.
Now that high fashion has targeted the players, one factors has to be kept in mind: it isn’t the players who are dressed, it is the club. The fans, the history — no, the entire city is branded. Now that the disdain held against football is slowly fading away, designers are en route to make a massive comeback in the biggest sport, or as a Spaniard might say: “Remontada!”
Bibliography
- Bracht, Christian. “Kick-Off with Couture: How Luxury Brands Are Taking Over Football.” Sleek Magazine, 26 Aug. 2025.
- “Louis Vuitton Becomes Official Partner of Real Madrid and Designs Exclusive Wardrobe for the Storied Club’s Teams.” LVMH, 18 June 2025.
- Burke, Elias. “Why have Real Madrid partnered with Louis Vuitton?.” The New York Times / The Athletic, 17 June 2025.
- Denny, Godfrey. “Louis Vuitton to dress Real Madrid for off-field action” Fashion Network, 13 June 2025.