Streetwear and crop tops take World Cup fashion to new heights

Shirt launches are a hotly anticipated part of every World Cup.

And this year's campaigns from the two main kit-makers - Adidas and Nike - mark a notable departure from previous competitions, featuring more streetwear-inspired collections than traditional matching football shorts, socks and boots. Inspired by football culture on and off the pitch, the collections mix archive classics with streetwear staples. Nike launched its World Cup home shirts with a Hollywood-worthy short film of star players including Virgil van Dijk, William Saliba and Cole Palmer modelling their kits with cargo trousers, jeans and trainers. Adidas went one step further when they launched their away shirts in Los Angeles recently. Celebrities including Kendall Jenner and Damson Idris watched models styling their kits with flared trousers, distressed denim and micro-shorts. It's a way of showing fans "how to bring the kits into their own life", says Adidas football's global manager. Sam Handy has "known for a while that the worlds of streetwear, music, fashion and culture converge in football as a universal shared passion across the world. "It took a few seasons for everyone to see it. "

Streetwear is woven into the casuals subculture which emerged in the UK in the 70s.

Casuals ditched full team colours for a more everyday look. Polo shirts, denim jackets or flared trousers from brands like Adidas, Fila, Sergio Tacchini, Lacoste, Slazenger, Stone Island and Fred Perry took over the full kit.

Over time, these styles were adapted outside football and became more mainstream.

Adidas has nodded to this with an £80 Britcore Jersey in its new collection.

Described as a 90s-inspired look which is perfect for "layering up" or "making a statement at a weekend event", it's clear it's not just designed for football fans.

Meanwhile, Nike has launched its Jordan and Brazil collaboration ahead of the World Cup, with an "old-school jersey" goalie top that's described by the brand as being "field-ready style, remixed for the streets", costing £79.

Ahead of the 2026 World Cup - which takes place in the US, Mexico and Canada between 11 June and 19 July - some brands have pushed the boundaries between sportswear and streetwear even further by launching cropped versions of many of their shirts.

First introduced by Adidas for major European clubs like Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich in 2025, they've been described as a "more exciting product for female fans".

The crop tops were inspired by "seeing lots of fans cutting jerseys and re-sewing them to get the fit they wanted", says Handy.

"The future of football is women and the people who don't credibly invest in them are missing out on expanding fandom in 50% of the population," he stresses.

Match-day outfits have deepened 22-year-old Ellie-Ann Prendergast's love for Liverpool.

"Styling myself for games has made me enjoy them more," Prendergast says. She's "obsessed" with styling outfits and keeping up with the latest kits - and loves seeing fans dressing up on match days. "As a new football fan I feel like I've been accepted straight into the fanbase because they're such a family," she adds.

Given its deep ties with the trend-setting US basketball and American football leagues, the NBA and NFL, it feels apt streetwear styles are included in this year's North American World Cup kit collections.

But while streetwear is increasingly featured in collections now, fashion in sport hasn't always been embraced.

In 2005, an NBA dress code asked players to dress "business casual" while representing the sport - an attempt to banish streetwear from the league.

Players hired stylists to bend the NBA's rules as much as possible to still incorporate streetwear looks and showcase their own personal fashion sense. Many of today's footballers have grown up "looking up to basketball players", says British football content creator Tiannah Pedler.

She believes fashion is one of the few opportunities footballers have to show off their personality.

"The ones that are interested in fashion can create this really strong personal brand," the 26-year-old says.

David Beckham is an example of this in the early 2000s, but more recently, Kylian Mbappé, Marcus Rashford and Jude Bellingham have all attended Paris Fashion Week shows when off the pitch.

It's also something players in France have long been known for - with boundary-pushing outfits regularly going viral.

Back in 2018, streetwear was integrated into the sport when club Paris Saint-Germain launched its commercial partnership with the Nike Air Jordan brand.

This collaboration with the Jordan brand - founded by basketball's Michael Jordan - helped "kickstart" this fashion trend in European football. "PSG are very good at making the club a bit of a lifestyle brand where even non-football fans might like to wear merch," Pedler says. Pedler sees Arsenal as leading the way in this area, having already collaborated with a number of London streetwear brands in the last year, including Places + Faces, LABRUM and Aries. As football clubs look to cash in on fans looking for more fashionable ways to support their clubs, you can expect to see more streetwear collaborations in the future