AFL stars Buddy Franklin, Toby Greene suit up for GQ
Australia’s top AFL stars swap footy gear for high fashion before opening season.
Australian rules football is a stylish sport. Leaping marks, thundering kicks, fancy footwork – it’s a joy to watch, whether you’re a casual fan or a diehard supporter.
But it’s also stylish in another way. Whether it’s Warwick Capper’s mullet or Nat Fyfe’s Brownlow Medal-night suit, the players of our native game have often had a flair for style.
Never before quite like this, though.
In a photo shoot released overnight for GQ Australia and coinciding with the opening AFL match of the season between Richmond and Carlton at the MCG, four stars of the modern era – Buddy Franklin, Bailey Smith, Christian Petracca and Toby Greene – have swapped their guernseys for designer clothing, putting themselves up there with the stylish stars of the NBA in the US or Premier League football in England.
It’s a sign of Australia’s growing embrace of self-expression and confidence in the clothing you wear, and these four stars of the game are up for it. Alongside the photo shoot, each of the players also sat down for an in-depth interview which will be shared in a series of profiles over the first weekend of the opening season, giving new insights to who these men are outside the white lines of a footy field.
Sign up to GQ Australia Daily to stay up to date with the latest in entertainment, style, fitness and business.