While many European football clubs stick to uniform team wear, Liverpool’s players arrive in different Tommy Hilfiger outfits. The approach echoes the NBA – and raises the question of whether such arrivals could become a fixed part of matchday culture in European football too.
Virgil van Dijk is wearing sunglasses, even though it is long past dusk. He pairs them with a black leather jacket, an unbuttoned white shirt and a white undershirt. Florian Wirtz turns up in a blue-and-red striped rugby shirt under a navy jacket. It is the evening of the Champions League game against Villarreal, and the Liverpool players making their way to the stadium look as though each of them has somewhere different to be.
And yet they have all been dressed by the same fashion partner. Tommy Hilfiger has been dressing Liverpool’s men’s and women’s teams for selected matchdays since January 2026, and the players have arrived at the stadium in a range of looks from the American brand several times. Against Villarreal, they are wearing pieces from its autumn 2026 collection.
Team Suits Over Tunnel Fits: Why European Clubs Tend to Dress Alike
Whether it is a tracksuit, a polo shirt or formalwear, a uniform team appearance is part of matchday at many European football clubs. For special occasions, fashion partnerships come into play as well, such as Barcelona with AMIRI, Real Madrid with Louis Vuitton, Paris Saint-Germain with Dior or Bayern Munich with Replay. Even then, though, a coordinated team look usually takes priority over letting players stand out in individual outfits.
Before Liverpool started arriving at games in different Tommy Hilfiger outfits, Barcelona had already drawn attention with their players’ individual pre-match looks – until Hansi Flick reportedly put a stop to it after taking charge in the summer of 2024. The presumed reason: the players were meant to concentrate more on their football again.
Interest in these arrivals is undiminished, however. Whenever national teams get together, players’ arrival fits are followed with anticipation and curiosity.
Tunnel Fits: How the NBA Turned the Arena Walk Into a Stage
What is drawing growing attention in European football has long been an established part of matchday culture in the NBA, where players’ arrivals are staged in public. The league had its style icons long before, from Walt Frazier to Dennis Rodman and Allen Iverson. Yet the moment widely seen as a turning point was, of all things, a dress code: in 2005, the league ordered its players into business casual and banned, among other things, chains worn over clothing. Over time, the code was applied more loosely, while players showed their personal style more and more openly.
Today, arrivals are photographed and shared on social media as “tunnel fits”. They are among the most successful content on the league’s channels, Lisa Piken Koper, who is responsible for apparel at the NBA, told the trade publication WWD: “It’s grown as social media has grown.”
Arrivals also matter in other US leagues: the NFL describes them as its “red carpet”, while the NHL scrapped its dress code for the 2025-26 season.
To that end, many players work with stylists and wear a range of brands. Their outfits attract attention regardless of what happens in the game. A striking look can make an impression long before they even step onto the court.
Accounts such as League Fits, founded in 2018 and now followed by more than a million people on Instagram, curate the images. Its founder, Ian Pierno, told Highsnobiety he estimated that in 2018 only around 30 of the roughly 450 NBA players took fashion seriously. Now, he said, even players with only a minor role on the court are into fashion.
Tommy Hilfiger and Liverpool: One Partnership, Many Looks
Liverpool are now putting their own spin on what has long been part of game day in the NBA. For Tommy Hilfiger, the deal is its first partnership with a football club. When the partnership was announced, the club said it wanted to show a different side of matchday and put the club’s personalities more firmly in the spotlight. The day before the Villarreal game, both partners shared a behind-the-scenes look at a styling session on their social media channels.
The different outfits give both partners additional ways to generate attention. Tommy Hilfiger can present a variety of pieces from its collections, while the approach sets Liverpool apart from many other European clubs.
Whether other clubs in Europe will follow their example remains open. At the very least, Liverpool and Tommy Hilfiger are showing what this kind of matchday culture could look like in European football.
