Last week, NOCTA and Venezia unveiled the Lion Camo Rain Jacket — a limited-edition piece that made its debut ahead of Venezia’s match against Sampdoria. But more than just another clothing drop, the release marks the first proper step into the lifestyle circuit for the collaboration, opening up exciting possibilities for what’s to come.
At first glance, the Venezia x NOCTA Lion Camo Rain Jacket is another clean, technical drop from the Nike sub-label. But beneath the surface, it represents something much more: following the Urban Collection drop last month, this is the first true step into the lifestyle sphere for the club and brand partnership. It's a tentative exploration of a proper streetwear crossover and a glimpse of how this collaboration could reshape the relationship between football, culture, and streetwear.
For the past few years, Venezia FC have stood at the frontier of football’s new cultural wave. Their kits became conversation pieces — crafted in partnership with Kappa, Fly Nowhere, and Bureau Borsche — establishing a new benchmark for how a club could express identity through design. When the team announced they’d be moving from Kappa to Nike’s Drake-backed label, NOCTA, last season, it raised eyebrows. What could a sub-brand born from the nocturnal pulse of global streetwear bring to the canals of Venice?
The answer, it turns out, was evolution.
The first season was a statement of intent — sharp, sleek, and restrained. This year, the partnership finds its rhythm. With the Lion Camo Rain Jacket, Venezia and NOCTA have punctuated a journey that ventures beyond the matchday ritual into a world of motion, texture, and story. It’s not just a jacket. It’s a piece of Venice you can wear.
“Venice is a city defined by motion: water, reflection, transformation,” says Tancredi Vitale, Venezia’s Managing Director, who SoccerBible had the pleasure of speaking to recently as part of a behind-the-scenes look at the new Lion Camo Rain Jacket. “That restless spirit is what we wanted to translate into the jacket. The water-repellent shell mirrors the city’s ability to thrive amid the elements, while the design’s fluid movement captures the rhythm of life along the lagoon. It’s not just outerwear; it’s a wearable expression of identity, resilience, and forward motion.”
Tancredi Vitale
At its heart lies the Lion, the timeless emblem of both the city and the club — now reimagined not as a static crest, but as something alive and moving. The graphic is presented in gradients of green and muted gold, evoking the shimmer of water and stone. “The Lion’s silhouette becomes a pattern that flows across the surface, creating a sense of energy and continuity,” says Vitale. “It’s a new visual language that connects heritage with modernity, and the Club’s strength with the city’s rhythm.”
This is where the partnership with NOCTA begins to show its true potential. Known for bridging the worlds of sport and street, NOCTA’s design DNA pairs seamlessly with Venezia’s artistic identity. “Every piece we create together is designed to transcend the boundaries between sport and lifestyle,” Vitale continues. “Garments that perform technically on the pitch but also belong in the high-end streetwear space. NOCTA brings a global sensibility that aligns with how we see Venezia FC — rooted in tradition but unafraid to innovate.”
That spirit extends to the campaign itself — shot in the mist and under the streetlights of Venice, directed by Nicolò Bassetto and captured by Michele Sibiloni. For the first time, players from both Venezia’s men’s and women’s teams appear together, taking back the streets for the game. “We wanted to reclaim the city as a playground, bringing the game back to its most spontaneous form,” says Vitale. “It’s a celebration of the Club, the city, and of football as pure freedom and joy.”
Technically, the jacket sits at the crossroads of form and function. Water-repellent and wind-resistant, it’s designed to move with the wearer, merging protection and expression. “We wanted it to perform in real conditions without losing its bold character,” Vitale explains. “The challenge was finding the balance between protection and style — a jacket that keeps you dry and confident, that fits seamlessly into your everyday life.”
The Lion Camo pattern itself becomes a map of Venice’s soul — a camouflage born from reflection and motion. “Its layered camouflage was inspired by the lagoon: the way water and stone merge in colour and form,” says Vitale. “More than an aesthetic, it’s a reflection of how we see Venezia FC: deeply rooted, yet constantly evolving.”
What makes this drop particularly significant is its positioning. Venezia’s journey from cult kit darlings to cultural tastemakers mirrors the shift in football itself — from performance to expression, from club to community. Where others flirt with fashion, Venezia live it. With NOCTA, that ethos feels amplified — elevated by technical craft, underpinned by narrative depth. "With the Lion Camo Rain Jacket, we wanted to go beyond apparel connected to the game and explore something that truly bridges performance and culture. This drop marks a new step in the VFC/NOCTA’s evolution — from performance essentials to a more complete expression of lifestyle and identity."
As Vitale hints, the Lion Camo Rain Jacket is just the beginning. “This is the first chapter,” he says. “You’ll see the story continue very soon — reinterpreting Venice’s spirit and icons through fresh, bold perspectives. The next chapter will arrive in December, on a special match day, and it will be authentically Venetian, fearless, and truly innovative.”
In a world where football culture increasingly bleeds into streetwear, Venezia and NOCTA are writing a new playbook — one that doesn’t just borrow from lifestyle, but builds its own. The Lion Camo Rain Jacket isn’t simply outerwear. It’s a manifesto in motion — for a club that refuses to stand still, and a city that never has.
Shop the Venezia x NOCTA Lion Camo Rain Jacket at shop.veneziafc.it/
