Wimbledon 2026: Tennis stars bring the catwalk to the court

This year at Wimbledon, it seems the courtside narrative is on fashion and self-expression, as tennis stars and their sportswear and luxury brand sponsors take on the All England Club's strict all-white mandate to make a statement on one of the world's most iconic sporting stages.

While all-white may seem limiting, tennis players, including Naomi Osaka, Novak Djokovic, Marta Kostyuk, Frances Tiafoe, Taylor Fritz, and Coco Gauff have shown this Wimbledon is a chance for them to showcase their personalities, as well as highlight technical innovations from the likes of Lacoste, Nike, New Balance, Wilson, and Lululemon.

Leading the fashion self-expression and bringing the catwalk to the tennis court is Naomi Osaka, who made a dramatic statement as she took to Court 3 for her opening match, sporting a custom ensemble by Tokyo-based designer Hana Yagi, inspired by the Japanese ceremonial dress. The outfit, designed to honour her Japanese heritage, featured a maximalist, multi-layered white kimono robe upcycled from vintage bridal wear, which, when removed, revealed a custom Nike performance dress adorned with intricate 3D floral rosettes.

After her first-round win, Osaka said during an interview on court: “I find fashion to be really fun. I wanted to come out in something beautiful, and my Japanese heritage means a lot, and they say all-white at Wimbledon, so I thought it would be really fun to come on in a kimono.

“I get inspired by a lot of things, and one of my favourite movies is Kill Bill, and I really love Lucy Liu’s character, O-Ren Ishii, and she comes out in this really iconic white kimono. I always tell people I like to be like a video game character sometimes; I don't want to be myself when I'm playing on the court. And I kind of try to embody her a little.”

Coco Gauff used her appearance at Wimbledon to showcase her ongoing collaboration with New Balance and Miu Miu with an on-court wardrobe designed to “honour the timeless beauty of this quintessentially elegant game”. Her collection features a sleek, minimal white tennis dress and a two-piece co-ord look, which infuses ultra-performance tech with lingerie-inspired finishes with delicate scalloped edging along the necklines, sleeves, and hemlines for a hyper-feminine look.

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For Ukraine tennis player Marta Kostyuk, her Wimbledon look showcases the second iteration of ‘The Martha Dress’ by Wilson, drawing inspiration from her wedding dress, following the success of the initial launch in 2024, which became a sell-out style for the sportswear brand.

The new design features a two-piece construction consisting of a sleeveless top with a built-in bra and a skirt, showcasing four-way stretch performance fabric embellished with technical lace details.

On the design, Kostyuk said in a statement: “Working with the Wilson team, and especially Joelle [Michaeloff], has been an amazing experience: I get to help create looks that are not only beautiful to look at, but are designed to excel on the court.”

Michaeloff, chief creative officer at Wilson, added: “The result of our collaboration is a unique project, capable of blending ultra-high-performance fabrics with clearly fashion-inspired lines and cuts.”

In the men’s draw, American star Taylor Fritz paid homage to tennis legend Roger Federer with a custom-tailored white suit by his apparel sponsor Boss, featuring a relaxed, double-breasted blazer crafted from white cotton with a distinctive slub texture teamed with matching wide-leg trousers, which had an integrated hook-and-loop side opening to allow Fritz to change quickly.

Finishing off the look was a silk paisley scarf, which echoed archival fabric references seen in the Boss autumn/winter catwalk collection presented at Milan Fashion Week in February, and a white version of the Madison B1 bag, crafted from full-grain Italian leather.

“The walk-on sets the tone,” explains Fritz. “Here, you feel the tradition and the scale of the moment, so with Boss we created something that feels elevated yet effortless. It’s designed so I can transition quickly and shift straight into match mode, fully focused on competing.”

Novak Djokovic also played into heritage and tailoring for his on-court look with a custom blazer designed by Lacoste creative director Pelagia Kolotouros to mark his twentieth appearance at Wimbledon. The one-of-a-kind piece draws inspiration from the white-piped jackets worn by René Lacoste and the tennis champions of the 1920s. It is crafted from an exclusive technical nylon fabric developed especially for Lacoste, made from 100 percent polyamide featuring an oversized piqué texture.

The jacket also showcases a green hand-embroidered felt crest patch on the chest featuring the traditional Lacoste crocodile facing a wolf, which represents the Serbian national animal and Djokovic's personal spirit animal. Inside the jacket, Lacoste has embroidered a personal message in Serbian alongside a family photograph.

The look that has created the most reaction from the crowd has to be Frances Tiafoe’s custom-designed white wardrobe from Lululemon, featuring a white performance bomber jacket, constructed with an innovative back panel designed to maximise overhead shoulder rotation, paired with tear-away trousers, which brought a ‘Magic Mike’ moment to Wimbledon’s Court 1. The tracksuit also features a subtle flocked motif inspired by the flora and fauna of his Sierra Leonean heritage.