How GAA gear became fashion's most unlikely trend

According to Google Trends, searches for ‘GAA Shorts’ jumped 90pc in the US in 2020. So what’s next for fashion’s most unlikely fashion trend? 

Cork footballer Orla Finn helps launch Ganzee .

For everyone the past year will forever be a marker of a host of mind-boggling events stretching from the blissfully positive to the despairingly negative. But, one thing that had the homogenising effect on Ireland equalised only by a spate of rainy weather was Sally Rooney’s TV adaption of Normal People. The humble GAA kit is an unsuspecting beneficiary of Normal People’s on-screen adaption. But this is not the first time Irish sportswear enjoyed a limelight outside of a soggy, floodlight field.

Cast your mind back to the less complicated world of 2018, Lidl in Tallaght was recovering from an encounter with a JCB during Storm Emma, people queued in droves for mass-produced doughnuts at the opening of Krispy Kreme’s first Irish branch opening, and 17-year-old Japanese student-com-street-style-aficionado paired a pair of Ralph Lauren chinos with a 2002 Irish soccer jersey. 

17-year-old Japanese student Ryoki on the street in Harajuku wearing am Umbro jersey with Balenciaga cropped pants, Ralph Lauren loafers, and Comme Des Garcons accessories @TokyoFashion Aug 2018

Ryoki Watanabe, now a model represented by Stanford Models (an agency that boasts a range of clients such as Louis Vuitton, Dior, Asics, and Umbro) found the emerald green jersey emblazoned with an orange Eircom symbol in a vintage clothing store in Tokyo. After a photograph of the student surfaced on a popular Tokyo fashion blog the beloved Irish kit went international — off the football pitch.

Shortly after Ryoki’s endorsement of the Irish kit as a fashion must-have, Irish model Oisin Murphy appeared in the venerated fashion bible, Vogue Paris, shot by the esteemed photographer, Alasdair McLellan. Murphy wasn’t pictured in a classic designer suit nor was he sporting the season’s latest must-have. No, he comfortably posed in a Cushendall, Antrim GAA kit. Hurley in hand, Murphy romantically gazes at fellow model Adwoa Aboah as if he is stealing a moment to reflect on a county final win against the nearest parish with his girlfriend.

A 19-year-old hurler from Birr in Co Offaly swapped his hurl for the fashion pages of Vogue. Picture: Alasdair McLellan/Vogue Paris

Then in the spring, the world was introduced to the niche world of Irish culture from the perspective of teenagers on the cusp of adulthood, Marianne (Daisy Edgar-Jones), and Conall (Paul Mescal). Suddenly, the anticipation, and drama of ’the debs’, the hallowed isles of Centra, and the saga that is the Leaving Cert was propelled onto a world stage. The breakout series penetrated the world of A-List celebrities such as the Kardashians and Katy Perry. Aside from Marianne’s bangs, and Conall’s chain, the main man’s quintessentially Irish wardrobe of GAA gear was ushered into the mainstream and then onto higher fashion planes.

Shortly after the peak of Normal People’s popularity one of the world’s most sought-after designer labels, Gucci, released the ‘Sylvie Web swim shorts’. These suspiciously Mayo looking shorts will set you back only €550. The cotton-polyester blend of these swim shorts is not dissimilar to the composition of the traditional O’Neills GAA shorts, which cost a more accessible €17. While Gucci hasn’t indicated any explicit affiliation with the TV show the timing of the short’s release is fortuitous for the brand.

Paul Mescal is still very much riding the wave of fame after his captivating portrayal of the stoic Conall in Normal People, and he is taking the GAA kit with him. In October Mescal was the subject of a long-read profile in US GQ where he commented on his “wonderfully normal childhood” growing up in Kildare, while the author of the piece commented on his “muscular thighs...built playing Gaelic football”. The actor showed off his thighs in a pair of Kildare GAA shorts, and completed his look with a luxury Hèrmes pullover which sports a cool $9,950 price tag. Yet another boon for the GAA on an international level.

Paul Mescal

Does this mean anything? We don’t know yet. But ‘The Rule of Three’ does dictate that three instances indicate a trend, and fashion loves to be on-trend. Without trying to sound too hyperbolic, could we be witnessing the beginning of the ‘NBAisation’ of the GAA? Where we see senior GAA players’ images and clothing being lucratively commodified.

Social media, and the internet in general has taken every brand and organisation into a new stratosphere, one that highly image-focused. From its inception, the GAA has been a no-frills, cold changing rooms, and love-of-the-game type of organisation. The unlikely pairing of the GAA with the world of fashion, and high fashion at that — after all we are talking Vogue, Hérmes, and Gucci here — cannot stay below the mainstream radar for much longer.

According to Google Trends, searches for ‘GAA Shorts’ in the US jumped by 90% from April to October of this year.

With immigration being a staple in the life of Irish people for centuries it’s inevitable that our culture would have its moments in the realms of pop culture and fashion. Having said this, the GAA kit’s quick and unexpected move from the marker of a clueless twenty-something J1 wandering Times Square to the pages of influential magazines is slightly perplexing. It’s beginning to look like only a matter of time before Kerry’s green and gold, or the Dublin blues grace the wardrobes of the style-conscious on both sides of the Atlantic.

It’s impossible to say where the next iteration of high fashion GAA-inspired gear will pop up — hurling helmets instead of hats at the next royal wedding perhaps? One thing is for certain though, whether it’s in the pages of Vogue or on the runway at Gucci our shorts and jersey combo will always look their best during a muddied Sunday afternoon slog at the local football field.

GAA, But Make it Fashion-Ganzee

Relaxed and effortlessly cool — don't those college sweats worn by the stars of countless American movies make down-time look so much more chic. 

From the hunk who’s just shooting some hoops while he’s getting his thoughts straight to the gorgeous girl-next-door who is taking some time to choose between the devastatingly handsome but oh-so-wrong gent and the down-to-earth friend she keeps coming back to. 

They always seem to pop on some casually faded sweater or t-shirt and still manage to look better than they do when they’re all dressed up for the job in their family law firm.

Possibly inspired by this, you would be more likely to see a Seattle Seahawks or Denver Broncos hat than a GAA jersey on a hipster at a farmers market or uber-trendy coffee truck.

Until now. Pride in your county and GAA fashion have never been stronger. It could be the Normal People effect — Conall’s sports look took on a life all of its own. Or it could be we’re all taking this shop local, live local mantra to heart.

Covid-19 has dealt a bad blow to so many businesses but others have thrived and surged to a new level of success.

Ganzee is one of the lucky ones — if you call working in the promotional industry for more than two decades and eventually getting time to develop a good idea during lockdown ‘lucky’.

Art McGann is one of the two owners of Ganzee.ie — his cousin, Timmy McGann, is the other.

Ganzee sells what you might call sports luxe gear. Hoodies, fitted t-shirts and casual tops all with county branding are on offer here.

Sports fans will instantly be able to tell you who won the ‘95 All Ireland Hurling Final. They will come up with ‘Clare’ in a flash.

Yes, that was the sporting result but maybe the real winner was Ganzee and the McGanns.

Art went to the match as a nod to their shared grandfather who was a proud Clare man. Along the way, he bought a blue and yellow crepe paper hat which stained his forehead and then fell to bits.

“I wondered ‘Why can’t you get anything cool to do with the GAA?’,” he said.

Just this winter (oct 2020) the GAA awarded Ganzee a license to produce an off-pitch lifestyle clothing range — and a wall graphics collection.

These clothes are a world away from over-sized nylon GAA jerseys accessorised with braided wool headbands and crocs you might see on fans on match day.

While Cork county colours obviously lend themselves to fashion ranges, some counties just aren’t so lucky. Maroon, mustard yellow, emerald green and school-uniform-blue emblazoned with an ad for a ham or concrete company can be a bit of a hard-sell for a fashion item.

“Cork is very keen alright; and Tippperary is very good too. It’s all about how well they were doing in the championship and the hype in the county,” says Art who notes that woman are the main buyers of their gear as gifts.

The range will be expanded over time. A more ‘demure’ selection will target people who don’t want large branding — think a subtle crest on the breast or sleeve. And fashion colours will be introduced too — there will be lime green and pink for men and women.

Prices range from €28 for a t-shirt to €48 or €60 for a sweatshirt or hoodie so you can opt for some sports fashion without paying Gucci or Prada prices.

— Caroline Delaney