Mens vintage track suit tops for sports and street wear

Mens vintage track suit tops are not just for the athletic amongst us. Sure, you could be a footballer without a lucrative sponsorship deal, and looking for something a bit quirky, but maybe you’re also a football fan, wondering if that famous footballer happened to discard last season’s trackie in the local vintage store.

Mens vintage track suit tops are brilliant when you want to look a bit casual, a bit retro, and still actually be practical. They’re great with jeans and a t-shirt, avoiding the matching track bottoms because unless you’re Paris Hilton in Juicy Couture, all that matchy-matchy is a bit muchy-muchy.

Of course, you might also be a fan of rappers like Snoop Dogg or just being ironic like Ali G. You also might be a fashion historian, collecting examples of mens track suit tops from all eras from the 70s onwards.

Mens vintage track suit tops for athletes

Mens vintage track suit tops were originally worn by athletes since the Fifties and Sixties, since the handy zip was invented and popularised, and were especially popular as street wear in the Seventies as skater kids and rappers started wearing them.

Run DMC made Adidas famous as a cool clothing brand with a song called “My Adidas” in 1986. The band already wore, and adored, Adidas, but were happily surprised to find themselves sponsored by the brand after they got to hear about the song. From then on, the band wore even more Adidas, and so did their fans. This is part of the start of the symbiotic rapper/sportswear relationship.

For Mods

Great fans of mens vintage track suit tops also include Mods, a British youth subculture most famous in their heyday of the 1960s, when teenage Mods often had violent fights with rival Rocker gangs. Mods had short haircuts, wore sharp tracksuit tops, parker coats, brothel creepers and drainpipe jeans. Their look was associated with a target symbol. They rode mopeds and listened to bands like The Who and Paul Weller, who also embodied the look.

Bradley Wiggins, the prize winning cyclist, is a latter-day Mod, so look to him for style tips if you like the fashion, and Damon Albarn of the band “Blur” adopted the look in a 90s interpretation for a while. Damon Albarn loved mens vintage track suit tops, and had a huge collection.

Sequinned track suit tops

Athletic mens vintage track suit tops are usually made in nylon or cotton jersey, sometimes in towelling, but fashion versions are made in velour, metallic lame, and with embroidery and sequins.

Gil Ra-im of cult Korean hit series Secret Garden has a passion for expensive Italian sequinned tracksuit tops, worn zipped up to the chin, and though they were not supposed to be the height of chic, (although he thought that they were) a number of fans followed suit. He had a number of different varieties of the garment, and you can still buy copies today.

For something a bit more low key, try mens vintage track suit tops in black or navy, worn with black skinny jeans and box-fresh trainers.

Snoop Dogg in tracksuit
Footballers in tracksuits.
Sequins from cult show secret garden

Secret Garden tracksuits

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