Menswear Is Hitting Top Bins At The World Cup  

With the bond between football and fashion at an all-time high, this World Cup is set to see a new wave of players and coaches show off their style across the U.S., Canada and Mexico through brand link-ups, designer teamwear and social media dumps. Here are 10 stars to look out for at the event this summer. 

For a while, footballers were thought of purely in terms of value on the pitch. To roam too far beyond the realm of the so-called ‘Beautiful Game’ was an affront to all that was sacred to the hard-nosed fans who were spending their cash expecting elite performance, or at the very least, elite effort, while coaches saw it as their duty to rein in any pervading creative excesses. Just ask Pep Guardiola, who was apparently chastised by the late Johan Cruyff for appearing in two full Antonio Miro outfits on the catwalk in 1993 amid a Barcelona title challenge; how do you say “utter woke nonsense” in Catalan? To borrow some parlance from the kids, the Manchester City icon did at least have that shit on, to be fair.

Thankfully, such days of solemnity are long gone, as the relationship between the sport’s sartorially minded players and fashion houses develops year on year, just as global pop culture adopts football to the heights that saw blokecore dominate summers in London and beyond for a couple of summers. The “couturification” of the game moves at pace, with Demna’s first Gucci lookbook in December rife with nods to some of the zeitgeist-altering moments from the 2000s (thanks, Becks) and billboards of Eberechi Eze doing some heavy lifting for Burberry and fronting the House’s recent “A Good Sport” campaign. To add to things, British menswear label Wales Bonner made adidas Predators in April and Martine Rose continues to delve into the sport with a wide range of designer jerseys, including a recent run of collaborative Nike kits dropping just in time for the World Cup.

Meanwhile, the yearning for authenticity has seen more and more players reviving the lost art of the “finsta,” a space to swap the branded content for a Leica-shot candids and embracing luxury outlets. It feels wrong not to acknowledge Héctor Bellerin here, the former Arsenal right-back who was the first of the modern generation to break the chains of social media tedium before walking for Louis Vuitton in 2019 – paving the way for a host of his contemporaries to do so. The turn of the decade felt like something of a watershed for the burgeoning association of fashion and football. And with respect to the deserts of Qatar 2022, this year’s World Cup taking place at the epicentres of the celebrity-industrial complex (hosted across Canada, the USA, and Mexico) – the glamour of New York, the cinematic lens of LA, and the neon-lights of Miami – should see us reach the zenith of this culture. With that in mind, here are the 10 stars to look out for off the pitch this summer.

Jules Koundé

There was only ever one place to start this list. Jules Koundé has taken what Bellerin started and taken it to the next level, turning Barcelona’s arrivals at Camp Nou into an NBA-style tunnel walk upon his arrival at the club, though that was outlawed by current coach Hansi Flick’s arrival there in 2024. Still, the French full-back has not been curbed, choosing to demonstrate his style verve in post-match settings with a variety of androgynous looks and fine tailoring, including a pleated Simone Rocha skirt, vintage C.P. Company technical wear and baby-heeled boots. Koundé’s status as football’s foremost fashion character was really rubber-stamped in 2025, as he followed up an appearance in a Jacquemus ad campaign in September 2024 with a Gabriel Moses photoshoot for Samuel Ross’ SR_A Engineered by Zara – arguably two of the industry’s biggest cosigns. France begins their campaign against Senegal at MetLife in New Jersey on June 16, so it wouldn’t be a shock to find Koundé stepping out in the streets of Manhattan in the days prior. 

Virgil van Dijk

Virgil van Dijk’s superpower has always been making the complex look mundane and thwarting many of the world’s best attackers in the process; think galloping steps, sprayed diagonal passes and robust headers, all while his signature bun remains immaculate in place. His style exudes a similar unflappability, with a range of cultivated looks from perfectly fitting leather jackets and smooth knitwear to the acme of high fashion in the likes of Hermès, JW Anderson, and sacai. The Dutch captain, who credits so much of his demeanour to the calming influence of his Surinamese mother, has spoken about how he and his wife bond through their shared interest in fashion, and it would not be shocking to see him delve deeper into the modelling world having first partnered with Scandi outfit Rains in 2024. 

Nick Woltemade

Few of the stars of modern football can appreciate the second-hand grind quite like Nick Woltemade, Newcastle’s striker/attacking midfielder, who is in contention to start for Germany in the U.S. this summer. Reach far enough back into the Woltemade annals on Instagram, and he may seem an unlikely contender for this list, his 6 ft 6 frame draped in the boorish designer gear that screams of a man trying to compensate for something. With the benefit of relative wisdom, however, the 24-year-old has admitted he no longer buys by price tag. Instead he spends hours traipsing the vintage boutiques of London and Tokyo and ordering Supreme pieces from Vinted under an alias as not to attract attention – a baller move. Many of his slightness would shy away from the baggy approach for fear of being swallowed by the flat silhouette that could look awkward, but big Nick has confidently leaned in with structured cuts that, if anything, add volume to his profile. Add in the thick-rimmed glasses that rarely seem to leave his face during downtime, and you can see why Woltemade is one of European football’s most interesting fashion men. 

Shuto Machino

Given Japan’s pioneering status in so much of the design world, it is perhaps surprising that the country hasn’t produced a breakout clothing star from football in recent years, but Shuto Machino could change that. Hidetoshi Nakata set the bar for footballers in fashion ridiculously high, even before Beckham and co, retiring in the early 2000s, having amassed 77 caps for Japan, to explore his passion for fashion and becoming a friend of the Louis Vuitton brand in the process. Machino may not live up to those heights, but there is a lot to be said for the 26-year-old Monchengladbach forward’s refined style. His latest Instagram dump demonstrates his range, with immaculate denims and lightweight windbreakers galore, while he has already fronted a campaign for a sharp Puma Japan jacket. Most importantly, he also has a killer trademark celebration that could become canon if he can help the Samurai Blue to the business end of the competition.

Jude Bellingham

England’s Galactico has made embracing the big moment his calling card, most notably at the Euros in 2024, where his last-minute acrobatics staved off a humiliating exit at the hands of Slovakia en route to finishing that tournament as runner-up. Jude Bellingham’s off-pitch vibe matches that air of cool, with a run of front-row fits that make it easy to forget he remains just 22. Another of football’s Louis Vuitton acolytes, he appeared at Pharrell’s debut show for the Maison in 2023 wearing a two-piece floral suit that set out his stall as England’s foremost trendsetter. There is an elegant simplicity to a lot of Bellingham’s looks, with his latest adidas Originals range featuring a deep burgundy velour tracksuit that could suit any mood. It is probably worth noting that the only other player to have an Originals range is a certain diminutive Argentine named Lionel Messi – esteemed company indeed.

Rodrigo De Paul

While his combative style of play may not be to everyone’s taste, Rodrigo De Paul’s technicolour buzzcut and grungey looks have made him one of MLS’ most recognisable faces as part of the Inter Miami team that won the 2025 championship. Often known as Lionel Messi’s on-field henchman for club and country, the Argentine has spoken passionately about his interest in fashion, having modelled Moncler’s collaboration with LoveFrom in 2024. One look at his social media shows the 32-year-old’s obvious affection for headwear and particularly beanies, while his collection of increasingly baggy trousers is more Madchester than Buenos Aires. Expect the feisty midfielder to make a mark both on opponents’ legs and in the tunnel runways this summer.

Achraf Hakimi

Having joined PSG in 2021, Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi has been no stranger to fashion week events for a number of years, and has curated a style that delicately balances the elegance of the French capital with his Arab roots. Case in point: his affection for loose-fitting trousers, simple footwear and cosy jumpers that feature in his more relaxed outfits shared on socials. The right-back’s spell in Milan also had an effect on his formalwear, with few players matching his archive of clean looks at awards ceremonies he has attended. Most recently, at the French Footballers Union awards in May, he opted for a relaxed suit over a shirt and blue tie, with subtle textures that stood out among the hordes of black tuxedos.

Carlo Ancelotti

It might be cheating to include a manager in this list, but if anyone could be trusted to bring together this group of relative misfits, it would be Don Carlo. A veteran of the European club scene, having won five Champions League titles at AC Milan and Real Madrid while also bringing his sartorial elegance to Goodison Park, the 66-year-old is set for his first World Cup campaign with Brazil. One of the great shames of modern football is the newfound affection of most coaches for a pitchside tracksuit look, or a plain outfit paired with the dreaded “smart trainers” favoured by so many pundits, too. Thankfully, Mr Ancelotti has been a stickler for suits and indeed waistcoats throughout his illustrious career, and will no doubt sharpen up the touchlines as he aims to guide the Selecao to their first World Cup win since 2002.