The American sports-fashion scene has always been dominated by the NFL and NBA, as the athletes of these sports are often being heralded as the greatest in any profession, with every fan wanting a shirt.
However, this looks to be changing, as football (or as they like to call it, soccer) memorabilia is on the rise!
America’s Soccer Shirt Sensation
Simon Miller, 43, who lives in Seattle, Washington, believes that the culture of the American sports scene is changing.
When asked what pulled Simon towards the beautiful game, he said:
“To me, it (football) has a much better culture than the NFL.
“People in Europe wear their jerseys to work, to school, to weddings even, and that is awesome.
“I love the fact that even with my clothes I’m part of a distinct community that love the same things that I love.”
Mr Miller is a big fan of North London outfit, Tottenham Hotspur, and regularly watches their games when they are televised.
Simon, who met his Wife, Charlene, in 2016, says it was her that kickstarted his love of football.
“Oh she (Charlene) is crazy about it.
“She is from London and all of her family are massive Tottenham fans.
“I must have 15 to 20 Tottenham jerseys now and I wear them all the time.
“I guess it’s because I can show off what I am passionate about and what I enjoy.”
Simon’s story is not an uncommon one, as he is one of the many thousands of Americans who are beginning to fall in love with the UK’s most popular sport.
The Seattle resident believes the English game is “taking a hold of America”.
“It’s really crazy how many jerseys you see around now. It’s like you can barely go to the store without being like ‘hey there’s someone wearing a Manchester United shirt or a Chelsea shirt’.
“We Americans have so much influence on the world and are always imposing on other countries but now it seems like they are doing it back to us.”
In 2023, NBC Sports accumulated over 540,000 American viewers per match for Premier League games, on average.
With more people being drawn towards the world’s most popular sport, fashion retailers are doing everything they can to take advantage of this football fever.
But what’s caused this spike in football memorabilia demand?
Football-Fashion Frenzy
GQ Fashion Writer, Lauren Cochrane, believes the football shirt has become a fashion item.
“Fashion producers and manufacturers will look to take advantage of what is happening, and soccer shirts are what’s hot right now.
“You always see people wearing Lebron or Curry jerseys, but now you are getting Messi and Ronaldo too”.
Revenue in the Soccer Merchandise market is expected to reach $1.38 billion by the end of 2024.
This market profitability comes as no surprise to Miss Cochrane, who says that increased coverage of the sport by media outlets has drawn the eyes of the American viewer.
“Stadiums are being filled more frequently and more people are being attracted to the glitz and glamour of soccer.
“It’s obvious to see that, through ESPN and other big network companies broadcasting and putting Soccer players in the limelight, that it is having an influence on people.
“We’ve seen it in LA and New York, with the opening of Classic Soccer Shirt stores – soccer is taking over America and people want to be a part of that.”
Classic Football Shirts, one of the UK’s largest retro-football shirt retailers, announced their first store to open in New York, this year.
Statista reports that in 2023, wholesale sales of football team uniforms in the U.S. amounted to over $400 million, an increase of nine percent compared to the previous year.
This is expected to increase by roughly 2.2% before 2029.
This football-fashion trend reflects the increase in popularity of the beautiful game in the USA.
Eyes Of The World
It seems our neighbours from across the pond are beginning to join in on the football craze.
But why has this started to happen now?
Dougie Critchley, Sky Sports pundit and producer, agrees with Simon but believes that the newfound football fascination is because of America’s big footballing future.
“I think a lot of it has to do with the World Cup.
“America is geared up for one of the world’s biggest competitions and naturally people are becoming more fixated on the sport.
“People are paying more attention and use football shirts as a way to show that they are ready for the biggest stage.”
In 2026, The United States of America, alongside Mexico and Canada, will host the FIFA World Cup.
According to ESPN, the hosting of the tournament could generate revenue of up to $5 billion.
It’s no wonder that Americans are getting football fever.
When asked about the influence of the World Cup on the fashion culture, the former Football Daily pundit emphasised its importance.
“The final of the Qatar World Cup was arguably the biggest footballing game ever and definitely one of the most entertaining.
“In fashion terms, it’s a massive cultural event and manufacturers will want to create a buzz before the tournament arrives.
“It helps that you (America) have arguably the greatest player of all time, in Messi, playing in the domestic league week after week.
As Dougie and Lauren both mention, fashion manufacturers and retailers will be looking to capitalize on this new-found buzz, especially with the world’s biggest tournament looming.
Brits Abroad
In recent years, many global superstars have made the switch from Europe to The States.
International icons like Messi, Ibrahimovic, Beckham and Gerrard have all applied their trade on American shores and played their part in the football-fashion revolution.
But now we are finding younger players are being drawn to this developing area.
Joe Loughnane, 20, is a former Wolverhampton Wonderers Academy player, who currently plays for NCAA Division side, Drury University, in Missouri.
He says he ‘didn’t realise’ how big football culture, and subsequently it’s fashion culture, had become in the United States.
“At first it came as quite a shock to see how passionate people were about it.
“In England its well known that football is a big thing and I thought that out here it wasn’t.
“America’s fashion culture is big, and sports plays a part in that.
The midfielder spent over 3 years in Wolves’ Academy system before making the switch from the Midlands to the Mid-East in the summer of 2023.
When asked about the popularity of football memorabilia in day-to-day life, Joe mentions how ‘refreshing’ it is, with people even wearing shirts to the gym.
“Being a footballer, I guess I’m exposed to more football but there’s shirts being sold in shops that I didn’t expect and being worn all over the place.
“Obviously the NFL and basketball still dominate, especially at College, but football isn’t far off and it shows with how popular shirts are.
“In my team, there’s a lot of people like me, that aren’t born in America, and I think people coming over who have an interest in something is going to kick up more of a fuss for it.”
Dougie Critchley agrees with Joe’s comments, insisting that, whilst the upcoming World Cup has created a focus on the game, the general development from a grass-roots level has added to the culture as well.
“This trend isn’t surprising, with more American players becoming stars within the footballing world.
“Take Pulisic, he’s had a great career across Europe’s elite clubs and that isn’t an uncommon story for most American players.
“You can say that it’s English culture affecting America, but this influx of talent is definitely affecting the sport and, in turn, its fashion culture.”
Mr Critchley believes that Joe is an example of many Brits seizing the opportunity to leave their parent clubs to play on American shores.
This influx of British talent has not only changed the quality of the American game, down to a grass-roots level, but has also had a major impact of the culture and popularity of the sport and its fashion scene.
The Future
There’s no doubt that football is the biggest sport in the world, and with that title, it possesses its own fashion culture.
But this hasn’t been the case in America, until now!
Whilst the beautiful game has a long way to go before defeating the cultural fashion giants of the NFL and NBA, the emergence in this football-fashion trend is an excellent way to start.
With more football shirts being bought, sold and worn by the day-to-day American public, it’s only a matter of time until the shirt of a Lakers or Chiefs player are swapped for one of Liverpool or Arsenal.