Courtesy of Beare Park. Beare Park’s sartorial roots aren’t in sportswear. But when Football Australia approached the Sydney-based brand, helmed by creative director and co-founder Gabriella Pereira, it was a match that just made sense. “The forthcoming partnership with the CommBank Matildas is a dream collaboration for Beare Park and our proudest milestone for the brand to date,” says Pereira. “We are honoured to have been selected to create custom suiting for the Matildas – a group who embody the core values of our women-led, designed, and managed brand.”
The personalised off-field uniforms, worn by the team’s players and Football Australia’s female staff, will include bespoke formalwear embroidered with each player’s name and Matildas’ cap number, incorporating the team’s rallying cry of “Til it’s Done”.
“I feel this isn’t a partnership that immediately springs to mind when our customers think of the Beare Park brand, but it makes perfect sense to us,” says Pereira. “Our designs are intended to be empowering; to evoke and celebrate the innate strength and emotional fortitude of the wearer. They are also crafted to the highest possible design standards – from sustainability to ethical manufacturing and precision tailoring, these are pieces designed to go the distance.
“The Matildas exemplify all this and more. They are, in our eyes, the ultimate ambassadors for Beare Park.”
Australian-owned and founded, Beare Park embraces a bold, elegant and androgynous aesthetic while championing the principles of slow fashion, and the off-field tailoring will be crafted locally using 100 per cent Australian merino wool, woven in the renowned Biella region of northern Italy.
Matildas cap number 125 and current Football Australia head of Women’s Football, Women’s World Cup Legacy & Inclusion, Sarah Walsh, expressed similar delight for the partnership. “This collaboration marks a special moment in our history and Beare Park’s commitment to quality, elegance, and sustainability resonates with the values of the Matildas,” she says.
“The personalised off-field outfits will serve as a symbol of the indomitable spirit of Australian women’s football. We are proud to join forces with Beare Park as another Australian brand making an incredible mark both locally and abroad.”
Athletic fashion can be big business, offering brands a global stage for the duration of a tournament, and the prestige of a national team alignment. Last week, Prada revealed its official partnership with the China Women’s National Football Team ahead of the squad’s arrival in Australia for the FIFA Women’s World Cup. Earlier this month Marks and Spencer announced its appointment and the official tailor of the England Senior Women’s Team.
“The gravity of this appointment is not lost on us – to celebrate and support these iconic athletes and role models on a global stage is both surreal and career-defining,” says Pereira. We cannot wait to cheer them on to victory.”
The Women’s FIFA World Cup, hosted by Australia and New Zealand, begins on July 20, 2023.
