A Redesign in Play- How Fashion is Connecting with Women in Sports

by Emily Kulyk | March 11, 2026

Sometimes a woman just wants to wear an oversized hoodie to a game. Other times, women want options. Both are valid. There doesn’t have to be a certain formula a fan has to follow when it comes to showing their support. When looking at the options presented, offerings can be discouraging. Items are cropped, ill-fitting, and weirdly rhinestoned. Real options for women to wear items that represent their team are limited. Women have been vocal about wanting updated items. This goes beyond attending or watching a game at a bar. 

There are multiple layers to how fashion plays a role in sports. Those come with the ideas of what a woman may want to wear to watch a game and how they want to represent their team, or excitement to see those around the team, like family and friends of athletes, and how they represent the team, or it can be the clothing they wear to play the game. Popularity around Wives and Girlfriends (commonly known as WAG) and the jackets that can be seen around playoffs, or large tournaments. Large fashion brands are putting their mark on fashion associated with events like the Olympics. Fans are now waiting for what an outfit may look like that will represent a team, event, or player themselves.

WAG Jackets themselves have grown in popularity in recent years. Now there are social media posts, and ratings, analyses, and comparisons are being made. What started as, seemingly, a fun perk that comes with, at times, a difficult role, is now a fan-followed concept. There is no exact history that marks the development of WAG jackets throughout all the major sports. Their rise has been seen more frequently. But one of the benchmark moments that could be labeled as a turning point into the WAG jacket and fashion space is in 2017, when partners of the Washington Capitals, Deanna Shatenkirk and Lauren Oshi, created custom denim jackets for the Stanley Cup playoffs.

From small independent brands to large corporations, representing a team can be done in a multitude of ways. Independent brands have a wide spectrum. Hillary Trocheck had created a brand, Statement Threads. The brand unexpectedly became the pieces and designs that would be seen on the New York Rangers, WAGs (Wives and Girlfriends). Trocheck is married to Vincent Trocheck of the New York Rangers, which adds another feeling of excitement as to what a jacket may represent. It also represents a big moment for a player and their family. Trocheck had been highlighted in the Road to the Winter Classic special, which the Rangers recently played against the Florida Panthers, showing off some of her designs and how something so simple grew into a business.

Photo owned by Statement Threads for editorial use only

There’s another layer to representation. Inclusivity is being represented with Kalani Bagsby. Partner of the Dallas Cowboys, Tyler Booker. Both Bagsby and Booker have been together since college. Bagsby has created her own inclusive line, First and Fine. Bagsby highlights inclusivity, and doesn’t shy away from not only representing herself, her fashion, by doing so, but she also allows others to feel seen and represented, and that in and of itself can be underrated at times. What Bagsby brings is a different energy to game day fashion. One that has the potential to inspire.

Photo owned by Kalani Bagsby for editorial use only

Small brands are growing and taking up space in the overlap of sports, fashion, and lifestyle spaces. Linechage Co and Offseasonbrand are a couple of examples. Each brand holds a different mission and portrays its work. LineChange Co, created by Angela Price and Julie Perry, bases their mission around what female fans wear. Which has become a common theme when looking at the larger picture. Perry and Price take it one step further and assist in shaping how they give back by giving a portion of the proceeds back to charities. 

Photo owned by Line Change Co. for editorial use only

Small brands are finding success. It is not a one-size-fits-all business model. It’s rooted in more than that. Maybe it’s a good story, or it’s a passion that connected with something more to grow a brand. One of those smaller brands that allowed a glimpse into her process is Charlotte Dundas, who runs her design brand, Bychardundas.

Dundas got her start in the design world early on. At six years old, she created pieces that would raise money for causes such as the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. She would do that again with Dundas, finding a way to give back to the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020. It wasn’t about making money. Dundas highlights that art is more about the finances. She mentions finding a voice and building relationships as other elements. But it would be a very close relationship that would propel her to the next level. 

While her mission is to give back and gain inspiration from designers, she found inspiration from her mom. Before settling down, her mom had been a cardiothoracic surgeon who then transitioned to running an emergency room in Dundas’s town. Medicine and art had been blended, and gave her daughter the space to do that as well from a young age. 

Jumping ahead, Dundas would notice the lack of options that would be hung in a team store, and the style wasn’t there. The standard of what women should be wearing to feel their best hadn’t been met. She had new ideas. It was a wide market, and she would find her spot. The popularity of WAG jackets was growing, which helped to shape the work that was about to be done.

Dundas believes that, though there is an evolution in how these jackets are presented and designed, there should be timeless elements, instead of a trend. Maybe these pieces of art should be looked at as a collectible, and that would paint a strong picture of that chapter in someone’s life. To make sure she keeps up with the evolutions, she studies the practices around those details that are symbolic, placement, and typography. 

The influence around her work is not only personal, but it’s one she admires. Her perspective is important, not only being a WAG herself, but as a woman in a world that is similar to sports, which is dominated by men at times. Dundas mentions that the voice of the woman is important, as she will be the one wearing it. The understanding is intertwined in stories, personalities, and connections. That connection builds community. No journey will be the same. The designs that Dundas creates reflect those individual journeys. She believes that these jackets have become a cultural piece in the bigger picture of sports. Being a partner of an athlete can leave moments of unpredictability, a feeling of being suspended between two places.

Dundas understands that firsthand. The pieces she creates stem from the independence of having something to hold onto in those moments that need a little extra navigating. But it also celebrates sports and all that encompasses. The humanizing element of it all is important. The symbolism clicks and becomes a full-circle moment. The jackets are beautiful, but they represent much more than that. It can be individual to them and their story, whether they keep it close to themselves or share it. It’s personal to Dundas, and that ensures a story within the pieces is represented. 

Large household fashion brands are also starting to jump on board. Lululemon partnered with the NHL to create athleisure, branded with NHL teams. Sports broadcasting powerhouse Erin Andrews created WearbyEA, a brand that has options that span the major leagues. Kristin Juszczyk, wife of San Francisco 49ers player Kyle Juszczyk, is a self-taught fashion designer with people like Taylor Swift and Simone Biles now wearing her design from her brand Offseason. The custom pieces created are now influencing a larger market. Offseason formed partnerships with the National Football League, Women’s National Basketball Association, and Team USA. 

Photo owned by Fanatics for editorial use only

At the college level, it hasn’t quite reached the level of custom designs one may see when partners walk into an NHL arena. And that’s not a bad thing. It feels authentic and creative in its own way. Maybe those pieces that are created serve as some inspiration for the next game, and what the look should be, and how that would be best represented. College colors and mascots, maybe some that serve as something for those who are in the know, maybe a nod to the team, player, or school, could be an element. Whatever it may be, there’s a good chance it will be highlighted. But over time, inspiration is likely to grow into tapping into larger brands.  

Women also want options to play the game. For example, a round of golf. Getting into a sport like that. The recent Professional Golfers Association's Ryder Cup, hosted in Bethpage, New York, on Long Island, was a large showcase of how high fashion and sports work in tandem. Along with the designer being on display at the Ryder Cup, they will again show off winter designs at the upcoming Winter Olympics. Fans are now seeing large, luxury fashion brands pair up with events, creating more accessibility to fans.

The influence is offering more options and eliminating a one-size-fits-all approach on how fans should look, and moving towards how they want to look. Female fans especially crave options, which led to looking beyond a team store. There are now Etsy stores and independent brands helping fans design elements or simply buy one-of-a-kind designs from these small brands that support individuality, and it probably wouldn’t be something a fan would find at a team store. Small brands have a chance to take on a market that wants something different and can feel left out, in turn offering them more than what is on a rack.  If those fans can’t find it, then they’re probably making it. Which is how many of these small brands got their start.

Now, playing the game comes with new ideas. Brands like Fore All are growing in popularity, along with women taking notes from golf content creators like Hayley McCartney (formerly Bookholdt) on inspiration when hitting the course. McCartney bridges golf pieces with pieces you can take on and off the course. Creating a classic, neutral-based, timeless look. Women are looking to get away from the ideas on how they should look and take on updated looks so they can play a game they enjoy. Sara Falkson took on redesigning and reengineering the sports bra. While she’s the girlfriend of New York Yankees First baseman Ben Rice, she is also educated to take on this project. Faulkson is now at Harvard for Graduate school and previously attended Dartmouth College. She created Robyn to support body confidence for women playing the sports they enjoy. Fans can follow the developing brand and the journey on social media. 

Photo owned by Fore All for editorial use only

While looking cute, fashionable, sporty, whatever it may be, can be done in an oversized shirt with a logo. The idea of not having to settle goes beyond that. There is growth and opportunities in something catered towards women, not often seen in sports, which in turn, also supports growing the game towards this market. Whether the game itself, or outside perhaps as a fan, the intersection of athletics and fashion is noticeable. The influence is casting a bright light, more so than ever before. There is storytelling within the pieces and much more to be seen from the women wearing them.