The best sports collaborations in 2022

Football and fashion form a closer bond every year, and this season the line between sport and lifestyle has continued to shift. Indeed, we have seen increasingly daring or community-driven collaborations, works that go beyond the simple football context and enter the realm of art, also thanks to upcycling and recycling. So not just match jerseys, but whole collections made up of proposals, overlaps and field invasions. There have also been partnerships with the official clothing of the teams to guarantee aesthetic continuity for the players off the football field, without losing the contemporary and fashionable aspect.

AC Milan x OFF-WHITE

Only one of these partnerships, the one between AC Milan and OFF-WHITE, was chosen by you as the most successful of the year, mainly thanks to the Varsity Jacket, which caused a sensation when it first appeared. The cream-coloured jacket with the individual jersey numbers on the sleeve and the Devils patches on the back opened up a new avenue for collaborations and formal wear in the world of football, approaching the aesthetics of the American sport.

Stone Island x New Balance

In second place was a collaboration that at first glance almost seemed like a bootleg, as Stone Island has always kept its logo out of the world of football, despite being on the fringes of that world for over thirty years. Instead, the jersey that London rapper Dave showed off at an amateur competition became a reality thanks to New Balance, as did a pair of matching football boots successfully worn by Raheem Sterling and Bukayo Saka at the World Cup in Qatar.

AS Roma, New Balance and Aries Arise

On the bottom rung of the podium we find another project from New Balance, here teaming up with AS Roma and English streetwear brand Aries Arise, for a collection that includes match jerseys used on the Asian tour as well as lifestyle items such as tracksuits, logoed shirts and the ubiquitous terrace scarves. A collection that certainly did not disappoint Giallorossi fans and demonstrates the growing internationalisation of the Serie A brand.

Ajax x Daily Paper

Less noticed, on the other hand, was the collaboration between Ajax and Amsterdam streetwear brand Daily Paper, a perfect example of how relationships with the local environment can become a powerful tool to reinforce a passion for football. In this case, the homage to the Pleintjes, Amsterdam's earth fields, becomes a reflection on how the Dutch capital, and with it the lance team, have changed. We talked about it here with Daily Paper.