This story appears in The Hollywood Reporter + Sportico’s September 2026 Sports issue. Click here to read more.
If you ask top sports stylists to explain the philosophy behind dressing superstar athletes, it won’t be long before one leans on a Deion Sanders quote: “If you look good, you feel good. If you feel good, you play good,” said the trend-setting Hall of Famer, who spoke from experience as the only player to compete at the pinnacle of two leagues in the Super Bowl and World Series.
The (slightly abbreviated) quote is a succinct way to explain why stylists do what they do. (Hey, anything to win the game.) But lately, the confluence of athletes and fashion makes business sense, too, with sports offering a wider playing field for brands. “Over the past few years, brands have shifted from focusing on traditional celebrities to athletes, because they know that there’s a dedicated audience every Sunday,” says NFL’s inaugural fashion editor Kyle Smith, who also styles league superstar Joe Burrow. “For the Oscars or Grammys, it’s a gown or a full suit, so a streetwear brand can’t leverage awards season the same way that they can the tunnel.”
“We’re only at the beginning of what will be a transformational shift across fashion, sports and entertainment as luxury houses continue to recognize the cultural power of tunnel walks, pregame arrivals and off-court style moments,” explains Kent Belden, founder and CEO of The Only Agency, a leader in the styling world and the first agency to launch a sports division.
