Major League Soccer has teamed up with stylist Courtney Mays to launch its latest jersey collection with Adidas.
The sports league partnered with Mays, who styles numerous athletes including Kevin Love and Chris Paul, to create a collaborative jersey campaign. Mays, who served as creative director for the campaign and photoshoot, wanted to highlight the popularity of football jerseys among sports fans and fashion enthusiasts and showcase unique styling methods.
“I'm always looking for different ways that sports and fashion can come together and I love to partner with brands and companies that understand that sports can be a platform for communicating style and vice versa,” said Mays. “What made this project really interesting was that MLS had a goal of creating style that was accessible to the mass consumer. We want to engage with true lovers of sports, not just fashion lovers. This idea is very much in line with my personal styling philosophy: creating aspirational yet relatable style.”
The campaign focuses on the adidas Archive Collection, which offers retro-inspired alternative soccer jerseys for several MLS teams, including Inter Miami, Portland Timbers, LA Galaxy, Los Angeles FC and more.
Campaign images from the MLS Adidas Archive Collection.
Provided by MLS
Mays further demonstrated that everyday people can pull off soccer jerseys by using everyday people rather than models in the campaign. She styled the jerseys with clothes from affordable brands like Zara, H&M, Topshop and Cos. Additionally, LAFC player Ryan Hollingshead and his family model the jerseys in the campaign.
“Since the project began, I've often seen what I call 'wild jerseys' – people wearing them in my neighborhood while walking around with friends for coffee or wine,” Mays said. “For me, it's become like a real-life mood board. As I was preparing for the project, I found myself styling each jersey in the same way as a vintage t-shirt. Soccer jerseys are vibrant and colorful. They make a stand-out piece in your look. Just like graphic tees, they can be easily paired with denim, chinos, or even leather skirts.”
Mays shared two easy ways for the average person to style their soccer jersey: The first suggestion is to create a monochromatic look that highlights the team's colors, and he also suggested pairing it with neutral colored pieces to make the soccer jersey stand out.
The MLS adidas Archive Collection will be available this month.
