Court Fashion: Historical Development of Tennis Clothing and Trends
What comes to mind when you think of tennis? Brands like Lacoste, Nike, Fred Perry, tennis shoes, people sitting quietly in the boxes watching the match and their outfits – in short, the image that tennis conjures up in our minds has always been related to fashion.
In fact, the connection between tennis and the fashion world is much closer than you think. Tennis is one of the most visually important sports. For the players, how they look during the game and what brand of clothes they wear are of utmost importance. Of course, the audience interested in tennis also plays a big role here. From Anna Wintour going to play tennis 5 days a week and being close friends with Roger Federer, to Victoria Beckham following Wimbledon regularly every year, and many more, many people in this industry are closely connected to this sport.
Fashion People and Tournaments
Watching tennis matches has always been one of the most important places to see and be seen beyond an interest, a passion. At tournaments such as Wimbledon and US Open, it is easy to find Victoria Beckham, Stella McCartney, Kim Kardashian, etc. every year. Now tennis players are also in the fashion world. The fact that Roger Federer was ranked number 1 in fashion shows during fashion week and that Serena Williams starred in the Sorry video with Beyonce are proof that tennis stars are now intertwined with fashion.
But it’s not just the celebrity attention or the popularity of the players that makes tennis so relevant in the fashion world. The fact that many brands are wearing sneakers as well as heels on the catwalks and sportswear is selling out is a testament to how intertwined fashion and sportswear culture are, and this is even truer when it comes to tennis.
The fact that the orange Nike suit Serena Williams wore at the French Open in 2015 sold out one day after the end of the match explains this relationship even better.
To understand the connection between tennis and fashion, we need to go back to the roots of this sport. Not only today, but since its inception, tennis has always been a part of fashion and has added many innovations. In 19th century Europe, the sport, which was loved by the aristocrats of the time and seen as a hobby that mostly women were interested in, was actually a sport that belonged to a certain class of people when it first emerged. Although not practiced much today, the main color of tennis has always been white, as it was believed to hide perspiration and make women look elegant during the game. This tradition still prevails, so much so that tennis players playing at Wimbledon have to wear predominantly white.
Suzanne Lenghen has always been one of the most important names that come to mind when it comes to the connection between tennis and fashion. Suzanne Lenghen is a person who broke the image of this sport belonging to a certain class and made it popular among women from all social groups. During the matches, she wore short skirts, cut her hair short and drew attention to tennis with her unusual style for the period.
