Yay, Sports!

They know the influence, they know the impact and they know the vibes–and the brands love the vibes and that’s just what it’s about.

I think we can all agree that sports are having a moment. Brands are strategically recruiting the world of sports to amplify their campaigns and drive sales. But, the influence of sports is nothing new. Professional athletes (men and women) have always been cultural trendsetters and it’s time we give them their flowers 💐

You know a trend is here to stay when it’s been recognized by Vogue. Drake said, “B*tch don’t tell me that you model if you ain’t been in Vogue.” And, contrary to our feelings about him, he was right. A Vogue stamp of approval is like none other. Last month, British Vogue and Google Pixel launched “The Sports Desk,” a new editorial space that now lives on the magazine’s platform. The content will focus on UK Women’s sports and its impact on fashion, culture and identity. This is the first time that Vogue has ever created an edit dedicated to sports and it made me realize that the popularization of women athletes has gone global.

Let’s take it back. In 2020, Glossier was onto something. The cult brand became the first beauty partner of the WNBA– unexpected, at the time, but fueled by the same goal: celebrate women’s bodies. The partnership has since been renewed and expanded to experiential, branded content and exclusive product launches. Earlier this year, I came across a LinkedIn post from Chamiya C. where she created a concept for Glossier x WNBA. The “Game Ready Beauty” brief included a limited edition collection, activations, messaging and even a branded pink basketball. Her post received over 300K impressions and caught someone’s eye at Glossier. Yup, the brand went on to launch a nearly identical campaign a month later—pink basketball and all. As far as I know, Chamiya was never credited for her ideas; for that, she’s a better woman than me but I digress.

It was not long before other brands followed suit. e.l.f cosmetics is now the official partner of the National Women’s Soccer League and Kith recently collaborated with Wilson to repurpose old tennis courts in different communities.

Still, in my opinion, no one gets cultural influence like Topicals. So, when everyone’s favorite skincare brand went ghost on their IG page, I should’ve known they had something creatively relevant (and very black) up their sleeves. The product is: Slather–an exfoliating soap bar. Topicals first shared the tagline “league - level smooth” along with a vintage basketball mood board on their account last week. Yesterday, the product officially launched paired with a short video featuring professional basketball players Lexie Brown and Jarred Vanderbilt. Very on brand.

The late 90’s / early 2000’s was a fashion era dominated by oversized jerseys and sweatbands. Growing up, there was nothing you could tell me–A.I. (Allen Iverson) was my mannn. I frequently rotated wearing his jersey and Kobe Bryant's depending on which team was playing better at the time. I admired Iverson for his effortlessly cool demeanor the same way I fawned over Dennis Rodman’s hair and emulated Michael Jordan’s style. I wasn’t into tennis, but I needed beaded braids when I first saw Venus and Serena Williams on TV. I can’t remember a time when society wasn’t inspired by black athletes.

While the rise of the sports aesthetic feels like a win for the culture, it’s hard not to assume that brands are lacking originality. In his book, The Creative Act, Rick Rubin suggests that our ideas aren’t “owned.” Instead, they move through the world like creative energy and when their time comes, many people tune in and capitalize on it. Also, we’re living in a society that is consumed by social media. Sometimes I can’t tell if I actually have an interest in something or if my algorithm has just fed it to me a million times. I guess that explains why so many brand campaigns are starting to feel the same.

I do think this brings up a bigger issue: hiring. It felt like DE&I was stripped away from us overnight. So, who gets to be in the room when these ideas are being shared? If all of your employees look alike and dress the same, I’m genuinely concerned. Now more than ever, companies need to diversify their talent and bring in global perspectives. I refuse to believe that there's a limit to creativity and that storytelling needs to be repackaged. Until then..yay sports.