Slam Jam Is Making Umbro Cool Again
Umbro is having a moment. Again.
The British sports label, which rose to prominence in the UK football scene through the mid-nineties, has enlisted the help of Italian retailer Slam Jam for its 2024 revival.
Starting with Umbro’s Spring/Summer 2024 capsule “Penalty Culture”, Slam Jam, which will take the creative helm of all of Umbro’s lifestyle collections going forward, has fused Umbro’s imitable football DNA with its own savvy, street style aesthetic.
The first collection is a sports-inspired blend of archival Umbro apparel that has been elevated by way of a few inherently Slam Jam tweaks.
“People love football and Umbro but want a cultural take on what they wear as opposed to a performance take,” Slam Jam founder Luca Benini told Highsnobiety.
“Tapping into this, we started creating collections to capture the team spirit of the game on and off the pitch. Research and interpret, as well as lean in on the strong mancunian attitude with Umbroʼs deep authenticity.”
Slam Jam’s first Umbro collection focuses on “Penalty Culture”, which remains the leitmotif reaffirmed through Slam Jam's approach to subculture and trend and results in a culturally relevant collection enriched with contemporary fit and design.
The collection revisits classic Umbro styles updated with duo-tone check patterns and printed kits. Stand-out items include a masked check anorak, the now-iconic masked hoodie, and a jersey inspired by England’s 2006 national home jersey.
Although Slam Jam’s Umbro partnership may feel like it’s come out of the blue, it hasn’t.
In fact, the relationship between the pair has been cooking for some time now, something that’s enabled them both to really hone in on the collection’s granular details.
“We [Slam Jam] started the conversation with Umbro Italia some years ago and then moved it to a global level,” continued Benini. “Itʼs an emotional thing, really: we love the game [football] and Umbro represents the values we truly embrace in sports.
“That and Umbro is celebrating 100 years of authentic football culture in 2024, so we’re looking at the next 100 for them. The goal is to play well and have fun with it.”
