Thom Browne Is the King of the Sports-Fashion Crossover

When Thom Browne sends his fall 2026 collection down the runway at GQ Bowl—our second annual football-meets-fashion spectacular, which hits San Francisco on Friday, February 6—it’ll mark the latest chapter in the designer’s lifelong obsession with sports. Browne grew up an athlete himself, dominating the tennis courts as a kid in small-town Pennsylvania and swimming competitively at Notre Dame. That affinity for athletics has long seeped into his work: He has staged fashion shows inspired by ice skating and surfing and hosts a starry touch football game every autumn. And, of course, he has turned countless hallmarks of classic American sportswear—from bar stripes and varsity jackets to tennis sweaters and locker loops—into key totems of his oeuvre.

It’s no surprise, then, that Browne counts several rosters’ worth of all-star athletes among his most loyal acolytes. Everyone from LeBron James to Lionel Messi to Travis Kelce has donned the designer’s signature shrunken suits in their respective pregame tunnels. His more fanciful creations have graced the Met Gala steps on the likes of pros like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Angel Reese, while no less of a GOAT than Serena Williams chose a Browne gown to accept the CFDA’s Fashion Icon Award in 2023.

All of which is to say: There’s no one more qualified to quarterback a fashion show two days before the big game. To further burnish his athletic bonafides, here are 29 of Thom Browne’s most iconic sports-related moments.