When Sport Becomes Commerce
Tracking how fandom, storytelling, and participation are reshaping customer engagement everywhere.
I read a great newsletter from
this week about sport - and the themes inspired me to shape the focus of this issue. I’ve known Justin for too long, back from when he wrote for culture mags like The Face and i-D while I was living in London. His latest piece, ‘Why Sport Is the New Music’, in his newsletter offers an intriguing analysis: he reflects on the Oasis concerts and considers them as a possible bookend to an era when music helped define people - and groups of people. Justin suggests that maybe sport has taken over as our shared language of identity - that it’s more real, more engaging, more uncertain, especially compared to the music machine. As he puts it,“Sport now gives us the same shared language that music once did - it’s how we define ourselves, our values, and our tribes.”
So I put my coins in the PSFK Trends Intelligence jukebox to see what the system would play - what patterns it would find in the data and examples we’ve been tracking. The result is a research piece that explores what’s happening across sport - for the teams, the players, the fans, the media companies, and the sponsors.
Even if you’re not directly working in sport, I hope my research and analysis will still reveal what’s happening in one of the most important engines of consumer culture today.
- Piers, PSFK & Retail Innovation Week
FOR THE TEAMS
From Uniform to Mission Statement
Sports apparel is shedding its purely functional identity and becoming a vehicle for both conscience and culture. Around the world, clubs and brands are reimagining kits and merch not just as uniforms, but as storytelling platforms that reflect values, communities, and creativity.
Purpose & Planet
A wave of sustainability experimentation is reshaping the apparel lifecycle. Belgian club Union Saint-Gilloise has chosen to keep one of its jerseys for two seasons-a small but symbolic stand against fast fashion’s wasteful churn. In Brazil, Grêmio’s collaboration with Umbro celebrates the biodiversity of Rio Grande do Sul while using its anniversary kit to raise environmental awareness. Liverpool’s latest drop with Adidas extends purpose beyond performance, channeling jersey profits tied to player Diogo Jota toward a new community soccer program. With fashion responsible for roughly 10 percent of global carbon emissions and 20 percent of water pollution (ISPO), these efforts align with a wider shift toward circular models-repair programs, take-back schemes, and resale platforms built on provenance and transparency. Consumer research backs this up: 65 percent of shoppers say they would choose more sustainable products when possible.
Culture & Connection
Kits are also evolving into cultural artifacts that carry music, narrative, and identity. Barcelona’s extended partnership with Spotify cements the jersey as a space for artist collaborations and digital fan activations. In New York, the Giants × The Brigade capsule for Latino Heritage Month turns team merch into cultural celebration. Michelob ULTRA × Hypegolf brings streetwear and sport together through limited-edition drops timed to the Ryder Cup. Even Nike’s latest “Why Do It?” campaign-narrated by Tyler, the Creator-pushes apparel storytelling into emotional territory, replacing triumph with vulnerability. Each example reflects the same evolution: kits are becoming media-designed to be worn, shared, and felt.
Takeaway:
According to McKinsey’s Sporting Goods 2025 report, global sporting goods sales are set to grow about 6% annually through 2029, with challenger brands gaining share by aligning sustainability with identity. As the global football-kit market surpasses $13 billion, apparel’s future lies in merging ethics with aesthetics. The next generation of jerseys won’t just represent teams-they’ll represent what those teams stand for.
Culture in Motion: Streetwear Redefines Sport
As jerseys evolve from mission statements into lifestyle symbols, the boundary between sport and style continues to blur. Athletic apparel is now less about performance than presence - reinterpreted by designers, beauty brands, and DTC newcomers as a canvas for identity and everyday culture.
From Sideline to Catwalk
Luxury, fashion, and performance labels are deepening ties with sport to stay relevant with younger consumers. Louis Vuitton’s partnership with the Real Madrid women’s team brings couture precision to the locker room, introducing bespoke travel and formal wear that merges club heritage with French craftsmanship. In South Korea, Le Coq Sportif, Lynx, and K2 are releasing culture-first fall collections months early to offset slower retail sales - blending performance tech with everyday wearability. Japan’s Goldwin 0 launched a minimalist “Performance Capsule” inspired by trail running, translating its outdoor heritage into refined technical pieces for urban life (Wallpaper). The momentum reflects a market on the rise: the global streetwear sector is forecast to hit $371 billion in 2025 and $637 billion by 2032. McKinsey’s report also notes that consumers increasingly view activewear as part of personal identity, fueling category blurring between performance, fashion, and lifestyle.
Beauty, Identity & Inclusivity
Beyond apparel, beauty and personal-care brands are embedding themselves into sport culture. e.l.f. Cosmetics has added women’s soccer to its expanding sponsorship slate - which already includes the Professional Women’s Hockey League and Paralympic athletes - as part of a campaign for equity and visibility in sport. Nyx Professional Makeup spotlights Angel City FC players Alyssa and Gisele Thompson in its “Make Them Look” campaign, positioning beauty as a form of confidence and fandom expression. Skims, meanwhile, is moving deeper into women’s sport via a loungewear partnership with League One Volleyball - extending Kim Kardashian’s brand into a community-driven athletics network. At the grassroots level, new identity-driven labels such as &ndy bring queer representation and minimalist design into activewear, signalling a generation that values purpose as much as performance.
Takeaway:
As sport collides with culture, the locker room becomes the new atelier. Whether through beauty tie-ins, luxury tailoring, or indie labels championing inclusion, the future of sportswear belongs to brands that can speak fluently across performance, fashion, and identity.
FOR THE ATHLETES & PLAYERS
Precision in Motion: Sensors Bring Elite Insight to Everyone
As connected sensors and biomechanical AI converge, training is shifting from intuition to evidence. Once reserved for elite teams and lab settings, movement data is becoming the foundation of everyday performance - transforming how athletes, coaches, and clinicians prevent injury and personalize training.
From Pro Labs to Gym Floors
What began with Olympic-grade analytics is now built into activewear and fitness apps. Theo Health’s Alpha Shorts, tested by golfer Xander Schauffele, bring lab-quality motion capture to athletes through embedded sensors that translate movement into real-time feedback. Model Health has gone one step further, using just two iPhones to generate 3D models that measure form, power, and injury risk - lowering the cost of biomechanics from thousands to hundreds. Platforms like Virtuagym’s Max AI Coach are layering those insights with personalized training plans, making precision coaching scalable across gyms and digital ecosystems.
From Load Management to Safety Nets
As fitness intelligence deepens, devices are tackling health and safety head-on. Sports Impact Technologies’ behind-the-ear sensor detects concussion severity mid-play and alerts staff in real time. Strength specialists Eleiko are embedding data capture directly into barbells to monitor technique and training loads, bridging performance and prevention. These advances sit within a booming sector - the global sports science equipment market, now $15 billion, is expected to triple by 2033. Eight in ten fitness wearables now include AI algorithms, and 73% of users say they prefer virtual AI trainers - evidence that the once-niche quantified-training market has gone mainstream.
Takeaway:
The quantified athlete is no longer a pro-only phenomenon. As sensors, software, and AI merge into everyday gear, the line between lab data and lived experience is disappearing - enabling every athlete to train, recover, and protect themselves with elite precision.
Athletes as Brands: Turning Performance into Products
Athlete-founded brands aren’t new - from Cristiano Ronaldo’s CR7 and Tom Brady’s TB12 to Stephen Curry’s Curry Brand, stars have long turned personal performance into products. But a new era is emerging. Today’s athletes are building multi-category ecosystems, moving from endorsement deals to equity-driven ventures that span hydration, skincare, fashion, and home recovery. Enabled by NIL frameworks, DTC infrastructure, and global licensing, this next generation of athlete brands is less about merch and more about monetizing trust at scale.
From Endorsement to Ownership
Athletes now serve as both the face and founders of new consumer categories. Caitlin Clark’s partnership with Stanley 1913 debuts a signature hydration line that extends the brand’s reach into the performance lifestyle space. In Korea, sports organization SY launched Verite Homme, a men’s skincare label fronted by its own players - merging athlete identity with product storytelling. Performance-wear company Vuori is doubling down on athlete credibility, expanding its ambassador roster to include NFL quarterback Jared Goff and tennis player Jack Draper as it grows into global markets.
A survey this year found that 87% of consumers are more likely to purchase products endorsed by athletes they follow - a data point that underscores the shift from influencer to investor.
From Courts to Culture
Luxury and legacy brands are equally leaning into athlete-led storytelling. Lacoste’s ‘GOAT’ capsule with Novak Djokovic temporarily replaced its iconic crocodile logo with a green goat - turning an athlete narrative into collectible fashion. Nike’s global collaboration with Lego reimagines play and movement for kids through sneaker sets and apparel that merge creativity with sport. Meanwhile, youth sport itself has become a $40 billion industry - powered by families investing in athletic aspiration and gear from retailers like Dick’s Sporting Goods, whose loyalty program has amplified recurring purchases. Deloitte projects women’s elite sports to generate $2.35 billion globally in 2025, underscoring the commercial headroom for athlete-led ventures and brand extensions.
Takeaway:
The modern athlete isn’t just a competitor - they’re a creator and a category in motion. As sport, commerce, and culture fuse, the next generation of brands will be built not around teams, but around the trusted individuals who inspire them.
FOR THE BRANDS, PARTNERS & SPONSORS
Game Spaces: The Rise of Experiential Flagships
Physical venues are no longer static stores or stadiums - they’re becoming programmable ecosystems where fandom, retail, and recreation converge. From courts and concept stores to pop-ups and performance hubs, the new frontier of sports engagement is built for interaction, immersion, and community.
From Retail Floors to Fan Worlds
Around the world, brands are re-engineering space as experience. Skechers’ new Performance store in Miami spans over 26,000 square feet and blends running tracks, sport-specific courts, and digital displays to turn product demos into participation. In Shenzhen, ANTA’s ‘Basketball Arena’ merges a full competition court with retail zones and cultural installations - a hybrid arena-as-store that captures basketball’s creative energy. In Paris, Atelier Alpine extends motorsport into lifestyle, offering driving simulators, F1 screenings, and a motorsport bar that turns brand heritage into hands-on entertainment.
From Pop-Ups to Playgrounds
Sports culture is now colonising high streets and social calendars. Pickleball venues like The Pickle Pad and Chicken N Pickle are scaling from courts to social destinations with dining, events, and even delivery-app tie-ins. The League Group’s celebrity-filled basketball nights at SRGN Studios in Los Angeles blur sport, nightlife, and internet culture. Meanwhile, brands such as Tiffany & Co. and CLOT are inserting luxury and fashion into sport’s physical footprint - with Tiffany’s US Open activation and CLOT’s Country Club Wimbledon pop-up transforming tournaments into cultural runways.
From Gyms to Global Challenges
Even fitness brands are reframing space as connective media. On’s new flagship in Singapore doubles as a community hub with interactive design, group runs, and a Federer co-designed tennis zone . VersaClimber’s ‘Expedition Everest’ challenge united 3,000 climbers worldwide in a virtual ascent that doubled studio participation and underscored a new model of hybrid physical-digital events.
Takeaway:
The Sporting Goods 2025 report highlights that as online channels saturate, physical retail must evolve into “destination experiences” that deepen community engagement - exactly what these new flagship formats deliver. With the experiential retail market nearing $85 billion and growing 14% annually, sports brands are designing fan spaces as platforms - modular, data-rich environments that host shopping, sport, and storytelling under one roof. The future of fandom will be built, not broadcast.
Brands as Studios: Owning the Sports Story
With 65% of fans frustrated by juggling multiple streaming apps and over half saying games are harder to find than a year ago, a new broadcast loop is emerging - one powered not by networks, but by brands. Retailers and marketers are building in-house studios, long-form series, and live-shop formats that link inspiration directly to commerce. Instead of renting airtime, they’re becoming the producers - turning their own stories, athletes, and partnerships into content ecosystems that reach fans where traditional media no longer can.
From Sponsor to Storyteller
Dick’s Sporting Goods has expanded its in-house Cookie Jar & A Dream Studios, developing long-form originals such as a Little League World Series documentary produced with Imagine Entertainment and MLB Studios. The move builds on Dick’s two Sports Emmy wins and cements its position as both retailer and storyteller - part of a wider shift where brands own the narrative, not just the sponsorship.
Walmart’s partnership with Major League Soccer applies the same logic globally: beyond stadium ads, the collaboration includes co-branded programming around televised matches and a dedicated soccer hub on Walmart.com. Together, they’re turning retail into a media network - not just a point of sale.
From Ads to Art Direction
As audiences tune out short-form interruptions, brands are rediscovering the power of long-form storytelling. A recent It’s Nice That analysis highlighted a new wave of brand filmmaking - from Patagonia’s environmental documentaries and Rapha’s mini-films to Adidas’ feature-length releases and Nike’s reflective Substack, In The Margins. These aren’t ads - they’re cultural artifacts that trade in depth, identity, and narrative consistency.
Takeaway:
The future of sports media won’t just be streamed - it will be staged, sold, and owned by the brands confident enough to tell their own story.
INTERRUPTION: JOIN OUR WEBINAR ON 2026 TRENDS!!
In partnership with Waldo, the PSFK team will be running sharing our 10 recommendations on how brands and retailers could ‘be’ in 2026. Free to attend via LinkedIn on November 12.
FOR THE COMMUNITY & FANS
Leveling the Field: From Grassroots to Game-Changers
Sport’s next evolution isn’t about bigger arenas - it’s about broader access. From youth programs and mini-pitches to equity-sharing leagues, clubs and sponsors are investing in participation as a long-term strategy for both growth and good. McKinsey estimates that 1.8 billion people globally are insufficiently active, spotlighting why investment in youth programs and inclusive sport design is both a social and economic imperative.
From Community Grounds to Global Goals
Ahead of the 2026 World Cup, Airbnb joined the FIFA NY/NJ Host Committee to fund five new mini-soccer pitches across New York’s boroughs, plus youth clinics and fan festivals - a $288 million regional impact that ties tourism to local sport. Arsenal FC and Unilever’s Dirt Is Good program are doing similar work through campaigns tackling period stigma and grassroots tournaments like the Varzenal Cup. It’s part of a youth-sports boom: U.S. spending on complexes has surged from under $200 million to $1.3 billion in just eight years.
From Participation Gaps to Player Power
At the same time, brands are tackling inequity and ownership in women’s sport. ASICS’ Undropped Kit, co-created with Inclusive Sportswear and the charity Mind, redesigns PE uniforms to keep more girls playing beyond age 16. Burn Boot Camp’s ‘Proud’ campaign amplifies female strength and confidence through member storytelling. And Unrivaled, the women’s 3-on-3 basketball league backed by Serena Ventures, now values at $340 million - paying six-figure salaries and granting players equity stakes. McKinsey estimates women’s sports carry a $2.5 billion monetization opportunity as audiences and investors align.
Takeaway:
Whether through mini-pitches or million-dollar leagues, the next wave of sports investment is participatory. The playing field is being rebuilt from the ground up - and this time, access and equity are part of the business plan.
Play to Stay: Gamified Loyalty and Fan Ecosystems
As attention splinters across platforms, the next race in sport isn’t for reach - it’s for retention. Brands are designing loyalty as a game, blending data, competition, and community to keep fans and members engaged long after the first signup.
From Workouts to Worlds
Connected-fitness platforms are leading the charge. iFit’s new racing feature, built with Ergatta, lets users race themselves or others across bikes, rowers, and treadmills, driving major jumps in session frequency. Peloton’s partnership with Hyrox extends its reach into the functional-fitness circuit with co-branded race prep classes and on-demand series, deepening loyalty through challenge-based training.
From Points to Personalized Play
AI is redefining the fan loop. Sahha.ai now integrates wearable data from 300+ devices to deliver standardized health scores and personalized engagement tools for fitness brands. Capgemini reports that 54% of sports fans already use AI or generative AI to personalize their content feeds - evidence that individualization is now the baseline expectation. With 86.8% of gym owners expecting membership growth this year and fitness-app downloads rising to nearly 3.8 billion, the incentive to turn workouts into ongoing games has never been higher.
From Fans to Ecosystems
The gamification layer is expanding from workouts to fandom itself. Trace, founded by ex-adidas exec Tareq Nazlawy, builds collectible-driven fan identities that unlock access, status, and rewards; its pilot with the ATP Tour increased known fan databases by 25%. Meanwhile, Genius Sports’ acquisition of Sports Innovation Lab brings analytics and sponsorship valuation together to help rights holders measure - and monetize - engagement across these new loops.
Takeaway:
From fitness studios to stadiums, engagement is becoming participatory - scored, shared, and rewarded. As gamification merges with identity and data, loyalty stops being a program and starts becoming a lifestyle.
Final Takeaway:
Across all fronts - from kits to content, from sensors to studios - the sporting goods industry faces slower topline growth but faster transformation. With 6% annual growth projected, the winners will be those who see sport not as a category, but as a canvas for culture, technology, and connection.
As Justin Quirk argued, sport may have replaced music as our most dynamic cultural code — the place where identity, creativity, and belonging now intersect. Looking across these signals, it’s clear that the stadium has become the new stage: where brands, athletes, and fans remix culture in real time, and where the soundtrack of modern life is increasingly set to the rhythm of sport.
The themes, trends, patterns and ideas in this email were surfaced by PSFK’s trend intelligence system. For over 20 years, PSFK has been known for delivering the best trends research for major corporations.
Piers Fawkes
Founder, PSFK & Retail Innovation Week newsletter