Martine Rose has kept one foot in fashion and the other in football for as long as we can remember. Whether she’s contorting footy strips into topsy-turvy jerseys or reimagining The Lionesses’ kit, the designer lives and breathes the culture, characters and stories that come with the beautiful game – especially when it’s girls on the pitch.
As such, Martine aired her third outing with Nike just in time for the Women’s World Cup 2023, decking out the US national team in jacquard, double-breasted suits, visor sunnies and the fluorescent Nike Shox MR4s Kendrick Lamar teased at the Grammys. Soon after, her very own Martine Rose Sports TV was flooding social media with a bizarro mix of interviews and news segments, covering everything from orange segments and the world’s leading Subbuteo tournament.
Directed by rising star Rosie Marks, the film namechecks a weird and wonderful cast spanning broadcaster Amelia Dimoldenberg, Troy the Magician and the Liverpudlian freestyle footballer Mr Silky Skills. The anchor? None other than Ruby Wax. “Looking back to her show Ruby Wax Meets in the 90s – being put on a plane with Donald Trump and whatever else – we knew she could handle anything,” says Rosie. Between economic forecasts on the MR4’s skyrocketing resell value and some metrosexual life coaching from hyper-pop extraordinaire Babymorocco, a sprawling narrative unfolds. “The concept became more about a show going wrong and how [Ruby] navigates that.”
Drawing a parallel between the ways current youth consume content and how it was consumed pre-noughties, the film appeals to hectic TikTok scrollers as well as the original pre-millennium channel flickers. “We started combining a lot of different elements of traditional TV: news bulletins, ad breaks, television interference or stumbling across the Babestation channel as a kid,” explains Rosie. “We thought about breaking the fourth and fifth walls, turning our eyes to the audience watching at home, acknowledging some of Martine’s friends and family, and having Ruby Wax talk to camera.”
As well as dry humour and awkward moments, the film offers a comprehensive insight into Martine’s beautiful chaos. Here, a long-held fascination for menswear archetypes – the office worker, the football terrace regular, the raver – and steamier references are transposed into a medley of banker shirts complete with football crests, flasher macs and an XXX hotline catering to fans with a thing for football. Of course, like everything queen Martine does, it’s about uplifting the underdogs and bringing new ways of viewing and wearing fashion to light.
With exclusive access to the director’s cut, we caught up with Martine to hear more about the campaign, the Ruby Wax cameo and the heroines of women’s football.
How did the Martine Rose Sports Television channel come about?
We had so many stories to tell, so having a whole channel to do that felt like the best vehicle. This idea of flipping channels and having a whole host of different themes and ways to communicate sport felt most appropriate.
What was the thinking behind starring Ruby Wax?
Ruby Wax is obviously a legend and icon, particularly in the UK. She was a pioneer in her style of interviewing and very much a part of that era’s youth TV – the sort of energetic, 90s anti-interview. You know, back behind the scenes, all the wonkiness and energy. We wanted that energy and humour.
Teasing this collaboration on the US Women’s national team was quite a special moment, right?
Well, this is the culmination of a long time working with Nike. We started the women’s football story back in 2021 when we did the shirt, the Euros and the Lionesses. It’s been a huge journey for me learning about women’s football – I knew very little before. I now realise how side-lined it’s been. But we’ve seen a huge shift in the past couple of years. As I learned about it myself on this personal journey, the world has caught on at the same time. It’s part of the zeitgeist.
What stories have you uncovered while working with Nike on these women’s football campaigns?
The stories of the Lionesses felt like a lightbulb moment, learning about where the journey started. It’s now come full circle. We also uncovered the story of Hope Powell, the first Black female manager, stories on refugees for whom football has been a saving grace, women that safeguard women in football… At the other end of the scale, we’ve dressed the women’s US team – a more funded side of women’s football. [US footballer] Megan Rapinoe has done so much to put women’s sport at the forefront. The pay inequalities, the funding inequalities. Of course, we also work a lot with Leah [Williamson] and some of the other UK team members.
How did you approach the tailoring for this collection?
I wanted it strong, simple and sporty, but didn’t want to just do tracksuit lines, for example, on the tailoring. In shape, it’s compact, dynamic and slim. There’s very little detail – the buttons are hidden – and no distraction. It’s about the athlete or the wearer.
This is the second run of colourways you’ve produced for the Nike Shox MR4. How do you reinterpret a shoe as iconic as that?
It’s how I approach design generally. I take things with cultural significance, whether it’s a men’s archetype or streetwear code. The Shox is definitely that. It has resonance, but not only in the UK – in Marseille, for example, it’s really big. It already had an energy around it connected to street and youth culture. To subvert something like that is fun because you’re pushing against more boundaries. It’s why I like working in menswear. There’s plenty of rules to break.
How did you go about casting?
It was an enormous process. We knew we wanted Ruby to anchor the whole thing, and characters she could work against. We had these different sections we wanted to film, like a talent show, a game show… Once we broke it down into the shows, you start filling it. Like, ‘Okay, Amelia [Dimoldenberg] would have chemistry with Ruby because she’s like a modern version, and she’s got her own style.’
You launched the collection at Dover Street Market London. Did any of the faces that came down embody what the collection is about?
The Lionesses came, Amelia came… Everyone there embodied it – it’s for everyone. I don’t know if you could single anyone out. Maybe, Chris [Lockwood], from the Lionesses? The Lionesses hold a special place in my heart. It’s for them and all the pioneering women that inspired this collection.
Have you noticed any differences between men’s and women’s football?
Yeah, I’ve been to a few men’s games and women’s games now. At the [women’s] Euros, it was less aggro. We were singing Whitney Houston in the stand as opposed to chants. Women’s football has shown that there’s an audience. It’s not only the aunties going. It’s the dads, mums, brothers, kids.