When Juventus Football Club underwent an extensive rebrand process in 2017 they were ahead of the game while planning even further ahead. The redesigned club crest was the first step on a journey that paved the way for their Palace x adidas collab two years later. Having kicked off football’s streetwear trend and watching PSG jump on board, Juventus are finally taking their rightful place in leading it.
The famous Juve rebrand was a strategical masterclass in re-positioning the club in lifestyle, streetwear and fashion circles. They took a brave step away from the traditional club crest and focused on the strength of the 'J' logo and made it more accustomed to fashion, which in turn opened doors to a more premium, more stylised brand image. An image that other clubs will envy, and an image that other clubs will and already have tried to replicate.
The club have rolled out their own collection of lifestyle clothing, they’ve signed the world’s most marketable player to front their fresh approach and they’ve jumped to the very top of football’s streetwear scene. The foundations were laid strong and the launch of the Palace x adidas collaboration on Wednesday night was perfectly executed.
A midweek home game against Genoa might not be the obvious choice to launch such a landmark project, but this was a night with no other real significant fixtures. There was no Champions League to distract eyes, no real importance on the game in question; it was the perfect platform to let the collaboration be main stage. The news story of the night.
We live in a social media obsessed era. We’re addicted to news, we want new news, and new news is power, to be the first to drop new hype on the group chat. We want to be shocked. Juventus took advantage of this by sending social media into a frenzy when the players took off their training jackets to unveil the kits for the first time minutes before kick off in front of a full stadium – a live launch that was step away from the streetwear norm.
The club could have launched the collab by shooting local skateboarders wearing pieces from the collection at a skate park, but Juventus are confident enough in the link up to not have to act out the story – it’s a case of if you know you know, and if you don't know then you should. The club are confidently using their new found style status to tell you that the Palace brand is legit.
So why Palace? Granted, the London skateboard label is under the radar, but that’s the lure of it. Juventus are leading the streetwear game and are in a position to introduce new hype to the market. Paris Saint-Germain had undeniable success with their Jordan collaboration, but away from the stunning kits and apparel it was a route one way of breaking into a US streetwear market, while the Palace link up is a more natural and more organic link to streetwear.
The Palace brand has its own history in football. The skate label has previously released collaborations with Umbro and adidas on football jersey collections while also dropping two football jerseys celebrating retro Juventus and Inter Milan strips. While they share underlying similarities, this Juve x Palace link up is everything the Jordan collab is not. It’s thought-out, genuine and the result of years of tactical planning. That’s not to say there’s only one way of doing this properly; the PSG x Jordan collab hit a larger sweet-spot and most likely larger sales, but this partnership between Juventus, adidas and Palace will deliver more credibility in streetwear circles and acts as a foundation to progress this thriving streetwear trend in football.
Juventus have worked harder than PSG to reap the rewards of this streetwear trend, and while both clubs come from fashion-savvy countries, Juve’s fashion-focused re-brand, bravery to lead the pink kit trend and maximising their opportunities to indirectly use Nike’s CR7 for their own and adidas’ gain must be recognised and applauded.
So what next? This collaboration is the next natural and timely step of merging the ever-closer worlds of football and streetwear. The PSG x Jordan link up was the explosion built up by the likes of BAPE, Patta & Gosha, and followed by fashion labels such as Thom Browne, Dsquared2 and 424 partnering up with clubs to provide proof that streetwear and fashion brands see football as valuable exposure to a substantial sized audience of young males. This isn’t a case of football just trying to be cooler by using streetwear, it’s very much a two-way street.
Could we be looking at a new generation of hype clubs? It’s no coincide that PSG and Juventus have been carefully selected by brands for this new trend of collaborative treatment. Both are fashion-savvy, global clubs with some of the most marketable players on the planet. Could PUMA’s recent lifestyle hook up with Balmain translate into an AC Milan release, or could adidas Spezial use the label’s Lancastrian popularity on a Man United jersey? The possibility of this powerhouse partnership between football and streetwear is endless, both markets stay ahead of the game with fresh innovation and style trends, and for that reason this won’t be the last streetwear collaboration to feature on a football kit. It’s here to stay.
Stay tuned for details on the adidas x Palace x Juventus debut drop...
