Last week, as Paris Fashion Week was in full swing, the growing influence of football in the fashion industry became increasingly clear. With Mario Balotelli walking the runway for KidSuper and Myles Lewis-Skelly making his debut for Wales Bonner, this year’s Fashion Week epitomised the cultural zeitgeist of the modern game.
One figure in particular was quite literally everywhere. Jules Koundé was prominent in his home city, proving he’s comfy in his ends as he becomes a physical embodiment of the connection between football and fashion. But serving looks wasn’t all the French international got up to last week.
As the streets of Paris boomed with fashion enthusiasts, infamous designers, and world-renowned athletes, tucked away in a corner of the city, a match took place, as the two worlds collided in an unprecedented link-up.
Instagram hosted a UK vs France football match, calling on Jules Koundé and Corteiz founder Clint as gaffers for the respective teams. An entertaining affair, the match ended 8-7 in favour of Team UK. But beyond the game itself, this link-up represents a watershed moment in the cultural permeation of football.
With both industries renowned for their creativity and individuality, we spoke to Koundé and Clint to deep dive into the football x fashion wave, who they think is running the game right now, and where they draw inspiration from.
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Footballer Fits: Who are your top three flyest ballers in the game right now?
Clint: “Definitely Rafael Leão. Lamine Yamal will be super fly in a couple of years, and Jules is also fly.”
Koundé: “Rafael Leão for sure, and I have to say myself. [laughs] I also like Kobbie Mainoo, he’s doing his thing at the moment.”
During your career, how would you say you’ve seen the football and fashion wave develop?
Koundé: “I think it’s always been a thing, looking back you had icons like David Beckham. We also don’t talk enough about Djibril Cissé, a French icon, he was the first to do blonde hair. I think fashion and sport have always been related, but I just think right now we’re in a space where the young generation is starting to express it more. It’s okay to be into fashion more than it used to be, so I’m happy.”
Has the football fashion wave become oversaturated and inaccessible?
Clint: “I don’t think oversaturation is a bad thing when there’s a demand for it. I feel that naturally, footballers want to explore other avenues while they can because football can be quite restrictive. So a way to express yourself creatively is through your style, and I think it’s just a natural human feeling. In terms of inaccessibility, a lot of brands are making football boots, for example, but they make it for their audience and their consumer base. But there’ll always be stuff that’s accessible for people who can’t afford it, you’ve just got to pick your level and pick what you resonate with.”
Your outfits are often super creative and very varied, where do you draw inspiration from and what has shaped your fashion style?
Koundé: “I never had a reference, but I get a lot of inspiration from my hobbies, which are fashion and movies. I’m a big movie guy, so I always like to check how I feel in movies and get inspiration — one of my favourite movies is Heat. Pharrell is an inspiration because he comes from the music world but has always been into fashion and seeing him at the top of Louis Vuitton is inspiring. The inspiration I get from him is about being able to showcase different sides of my personality because I’m a footballer but football doesn’t define me.”
How important are inspiration and authenticity when creating football fashion pieces?
Clint: “Whenever I collaborate it’s always about what makes sense, and a lot of the time you can see I’ve said something in the past in terms of who I’ve wanted to work with. So it’s never really a lie, that’s just how I genuinely feel. So working with Balotelli was amazing, and that was just an authentic moment. I like it when a player turns up in an extravagant fit and then another player just turns up in a Nike Tech — that’s just how they are. As professionals, they’re both at the same level mentally, but it’s just a human difference — if a man wants to get fly, let him.”
Can we get a sneak peek at who the next linkup might be with?
Clint: “In terms of shooting or linking up with different ballers I can’t even say the name, it’s a forbidden name. It’s just I can’t tell you who’s next, sometimes it’ll be like we should work with my man and it’s just organic. Working with Kobbie was last minute, and even working with Phil Foden was a spur of the moment. A lot of the time it does depend on whether or not they’re a Nike athlete. But outside of that, maybe there’s some way I can work with Jules in the future, maybe I’lljust crop his shoes. [laughs]”
Koundé: “Just switch, man. Just switch. Come to the Three Stripes. [laughs]”
