Accessible, urban and casual retrotrics – can table tennis prevail as the next keynote player between sport, fashion and lifestyle?
For a long time, the tennis serve was reserved with its toning brands such as Lacoste and Fila, which embodied an elite look with pleated sock and pullunder. This chic sports style naturally fits the conservative change of society, but also screams for a countermovement.
The little sister table tennis never adhered to the formal rules so much. While legendary table tennis brands such as Donic, Joola and Butterfly have modernized themselves, the retro looks offer a lot of inspiration.
Fashionable surcharge on the plate
Especially in the 90s and early 2000s, the jerseys were similar to soccer patterns and colors. While the hype surrounding the jerseys from the lawn is already at its peak, the sporty polohemors from the plate and the right tight shorts-in the style of the current Prada men’s collections-could benefit from it.
The popularity of table tennis at the Olympic Games offers opportunities, said Celine Del Genes, Global Chief Customer Officer at Decathlon, as part of the current McKinsey study “Sporting Goods 2025 The New Balancing Act: Turning Uncerty Into Opportunity”. Sports like this are community -oriented and accessible.
For a nice round among friends: Inside, the simple stone table tennis table, which can be found in many public parks, as well as a few simple rackets and a ball. Alternatively, there are so-called ping pong bars and cafes in more and more cities, in which you rent a plate for the evening and play together in a relaxed round. There are no assessing looks from the neighboring field that the look does not meet the requirements of the local association.
Table tennis conquers Streetwear
Community and yet an individual style were also one of the basic values of the streetwear movement. In fact, the ball now comes from this corner over the net.
In East Asian countries such as Japan and China, the fashionable subculture around the club is already a bit more pronounced and is increasingly regarded as a form of self -expression. For example, this can be observed on Xiaohongshu, known outside of China as a Red Note. Various contributions on the Chinese social commerce platform show the growing interest in the trend. In addition to the latest collaborations such as between the sporting goods Li-Ning and the US Streetwear brand Staple, users also show their own creative skills in the inside by upcycling old jerseys and offering retro labels for sale.
The high-priced Paris Streetwear brand Casablanca was already devoting itself to sport for spring/summer 2022 and was inspired by the cuts and styles from Japan. To do this, cooperated with the table tennis brand butterfly for a design-oriented table tennis table and a set of rackets. Various sweaters, T-shirts and shirts that build on retro aesthetics are still available in the brand’s online shop.
Little Tokyo Table Tennis (Lttt) proves that enthusiasm also grows on the other side of the world. The “Ping Pong Club”, based in Los Angeles, plays at the top of this trend in the championship race and is currently conquering the streetwear world with his merchandise.
Lttt combines sporty pieces with Japanese-oriented streetwear, which relies on characters and pop cultural prints. In addition, there are cooperation, such as with the table tennis brand butterfly, to revive the aesthetics of the retrotrics with a modern twist-based on the merchandise-as well as suitable accessories. Table tennis racket bags or a table tennis network with ruffles-based on Lolita Fashion, popular in Japan-should of course not be missing.
Internationally, the association recently received attention through cooperation with the Japanese sporting goods giant Asics, which ranged from the peaked cap to jerseys to sneakers. The cooperation that was launched in the Lttt online shop at the beginning of the month was largely sold out after a short time.
@scotty.tsunami What people are wearing at my ping pong club in La. Too many fits that didnt make it in � #la #fashion #fyp #ping-pong #table ♬ Seven (feat. Latto) – Explicit ver. – Jung Kook & Latto
This gave the first top spin over the net and the last points are not yet counted.