{
  "id": 5491187,
  "title": "Is Sports’ Big Bet on Hiring Fashion Creative Directors Paying Off?",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/04/is-sports-big-bet-on-hiring-fashion-creative-directors-paying-off",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-04T04:30:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Business of Fashion",
    "slug": "business-of-fashion",
    "url": "https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/sports/sports-creative-directors-fashion-success/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Major League Soccer has hired streetwear designer Guillermo Andrade as its creative advisor, in a bid to boost the sport's popularity in the United States. The move comes with an estimated $30 million investment from the Swiss watchmaker.\n\nMeanwhile, the National Football League (NFL) is partnering with New York-based fashion label Veronica Beard, capitalizing on the fashion opportunity following a Taylor Swift-related surge in viewership and buzz last season. The NFL is seeking to expand internationally and enhance its cultural cachet.\n\nThese moves indicate that sports leagues are increasingly recognizing the importance of fashion in their branding and marketing strategies.",
  "summary": "The trend of teams and leagues signing up creative directors to design merchandise and shape their public profiles shows no signs of slowing as sports organisations start to see returns on their investments.",
  "key_points": [
    "MLS hires Guillermo Andrade, streetwear designer, as creative advisor",
    "NFL partners with fashion label Veronica Beard for cultural enhancement",
    "Investment and partnerships signal sports leagues' growing fashion focus"
  ],
  "editors_take": "Sports leagues are betting on fashion partnerships to boost their cultural relevance and popularity, with moves like these signalling a shift in how they approach branding and marketing.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}