For ‘blokecore’ fashion followers, soccer jerseys are kicking goals

SPOTLIGHT / Get your kit on

Fashionistas air the “blokecore” soccer jersey trend.

No one would blame you for not being able to keep up with the plethora of fashion “cores” that have trended in recent times, from “cottagecore” and “grandmacore” to “hot-boys-in-short-shorts-core”. Now, there’s “blokecore”, wherein retro soccer jerseys are styled with everything from baggy jeans to miniskirts.

Despite the moniker, fashionistas are nailing the look, too. Not surprisingly, considering their country’s fanatical soccer culture, English It girls like Dua Lipa and Rita Ora have been leading the charge. Kits have been seen on the runways of ultra-high-end brands like Balenciaga and Gucci – the latter in a very cool collab with Adidas – but aficionados wouldn’t be seen dead in something new.

Paul Blake, director of Melbourne’s PFC Vintage, hasn’t just seen a boom in demand but a sea-change in who’s buying. “When we started in 2019, almost every customer was a football fan, collecting their club shirts or vintage shirts in general,” he says. “In 2025, we’ve gone from having a very male-dominated customer base to seeing a lot more women.”

What they’re buying has also shifted. “Five years ago, Borussia Dortmund and PSG [Paris Saint-Germain] were the must-haves, particularly shirts from the 1990s. But buyers now want shirts from the club they support. Arsenal topped our sales last year, with Liverpool not far behind.”

Blake lists Fiorentina’s 1992-93 home and away shirt as highly covetable, but France’s 1998 home shirt – worn when its team won the World Cup on home soil – is the holy grail: “Find one with captain Zinedine Zidane’s name on it and you’ve won jersey culture,” he says. Deborah Cooke

READ/ Bridging the gap

Storied photographer Juno Gemes’ new collection features 226 photographs of Indigenous culture taken over five decades.

In 1969, the celebrated photographer Juno Gemes was camping in England when she had a dream about an Aboriginal elder appearing out of the desert. A year later, in Central Australia, a Pitjantjatjara elder approached her, sat down and patted the earth beside her three times. For Gemes, the child of Hungarian refugees displaced by war, there was only one way to interpret this: as an invitation to become an apprentice to – and chronicler of – the great, ancient culture of her second home. In Until Justice Comes (Upswell Publishing: $65), a collection of 226 photographs taken over five decades, Gemes captures decisive moments in the struggle of First Nations activists to achieve recognition and self-determination. A powerful summation of a long career that marries artistry with activism, the book also includes new writings and poems by key collaborators, including Gemes’ old friend, the Hon. Linda Burney, Larissa Behrendt and Frances Peters-Little. Essential. Sharon Bradley

WEAR / Sophomore effort

Channel your inner “Kendrick at the Super Bowl” in this Ksubi varsity jacket.

During the Super Bowl half-time performance last month, trend-spotters were fixated on rapper Kendrick Lamar’s boot-cut jeans, but they should’ve been looking above the belt: his varsity jacket was top of the class. Get the look with Ksubi’s “Playoff” varsity jacket ($900) in ecru. Clashing fonts nod to the school of hard knocks while the Italian melton wool, striped trim and cowhide sleeves are pure Ivy League. Damien Woolnough

SHOP / Come in, spinners

Packed with vintage charm: Samsonite’s New Streamlite range.

Guaranteed to attract envious looks at the airport and on your feed, Samsonite’s New Streamlite range blends vintage charm with modern design in this imagining of its iconic 1940s case. The three-piece set (Briefcase, $599, Spinner 55, $1025 and Spinner 75, $1299) – is stylish, smart, and lined with the brand’s heritage Resort Print, inspired by classic English paisley. With only 2025 pieces worldwide – 75 in Australia – each one feels like a collector’s item and comes complete with a serial number and monogram tag. Available in Admiral Blue and Bermuda Green. Ready to pack and post? Frances Mocnik

GROOVE / Disappearing act

A new doco examines Sydney singer-songwriter William Arthur and his band Glide in the 90s, as dreams of making it big went tragically wrong.Credit: Shaney Balcombe

Glide was destined for big things in the ’90s. Led by shy but ambitious singer-songwriter William Arthur, the band crashed Sydney’s indie rock scene with a sound that combined melancholy, majesty, sinew and swagger. But a combination of hard-headedness, line-up changes and substance abuse hindered its chances of crossing over to the mainstream. In 1999, Arthur’s death from an accidental drug overdose at age 33 put a sad stop to its story. Filmmaker Ben deHoedt’s documentary, Disappear Here, isn’t just a tribute to Arthur and the band, but a lament for a decade where creativity and commerce collided, leaving many casualties. It’s also a visually gorgeous evocation of Sydney, which plays a starring role. At Thornbury Picture House, Melbourne, March 20 and 21, and Randwick Ritz, Sydney, April 24. Barry Divola

EAT / Cooking on gas

Tony Tan will share recipes from his latest cookbook at Flower Drum as part of the Melbourne Food & Wine Festival.

Victoria is always a merry place to eat and drink, but the annual Melbourne Food & Wine Festival (March 21-30) offers 200 more compelling excuses to gather for snacking and sipping. How to pick the best of the bunch? Highlights include croquet and a picnic at Nagambie’s Tahbilk Winery, a Melbourne Place pop-up featuring Copenhagen “bread whisperer” Richard Hart, and Dim City, a celebration of a Melbourne icon reimagined by top chefs. Elsewhere, local author and cooking teacher Tony Tan will be plying his skills at Flower Drum, while cocktail expert Sebastian Reaburn shakes and stirs Five Cocktails to “try before you die” at the Anther distillery in Geelong. Dani Valent

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