In response to the surprise announcement of Zlatan Ibrahimović's retirement, our print editor argues why the Swedish football star has always had flair well beyond the pitch
Zlatan Ibrahimović is iconic, that goes without saying. Stepping away from the world of football today – he was playing for AC Milan, in addition to the Swedish national team – Zlatan's made his mark on the pitch, but also far beyond it. With his bombastic persona and sheer charisma, Zlatan is a star whose name we will remember long after his retirement.
A lesser celebrated facet of Sweden’s most legendary footballer is his style. A bit sporty, not especially fussy, occasionally punctuated with a branded hoodie or T-shirt, Zlatan’s looks come and go without significant comment. However, readers, I am here to tell you that Zlatan Ibrahimović is a style icon. Not a fashion icon, mind you, but a style icon.
What makes a style icon? For one, a signature look. Karl Lagerfeld’s white pony, Princess Diana’s feathery coif, Anna Wintour’s bob are all instantly recognisable. Do you know who else is instantly recognisable? Zlatan. The slicked back bun and unkempt goatee is unmistakably his. He’s been sporting this particular look with panache for years, both on the field and off. It’s effortless and unmissable – two signifiers towards which many aspire unsuccessfully.
Zlatan is not just a man who plays football (very well, I’m told), but also a brand unto himself; one that isn’t afraid to capitalise on its appeal. For those who want to smell like Zlatan, there are Zlatan perfumes and deodorants. For those who want his signature hairstyle there’s Zlatan gel and wax. Want to get inside Zlatan’s head? Read one of his two memoirs or, if you’re lazy, watch his documentary (Becoming Zlatan) or biopic (I Am Zlatan). And when he’s not lending his name (and face) to his own products, he’s offering it up to ads for Visa or Samsung.
From 2016-2018 you could also dress like Zlatan, courtesy of his short-lived sportswear brand A-Z. Now you can get your Zlatan-approved gear courtesy of his capsule collaborations with Dsquared2. The most recent hoodies, t-shirts and caps prominently feature one of the Italian luxury brand’s favourite words: “Icon”. Others tout a popular Zlatanism: “I have never won silvers, just lost golds. Good players win races. Great players break records. Icons change the game”.
Not since Paris Hilton have we seen such a fully-formed and shamelessly shilled out persona. If this is not the handiwork of a style icon – one whom others seek to emulate through mimicry and unnecessary purchases – I don’t know what is.
Photo: Star Max/GC Images.
But the last piece of the puzzle, the thing that launches Zlatan into indisputable style icon territory, is something he has in abundance: confidence. It is not the bun who makes the man, but the man who makes the bun. Zlatan takes his low-key looks – his skinny jeans and black button-downs, his Adidas shorts and grey t-shirts – and makes them something more. He offers no apologies, no second guesses, just pure, enviable conviction. Whether you like his aesthetic or not, you have to recognise his game.
And as more and more luxury houses turn towards style icons – fashionable or not – to walk their runways and front their campaigns, creating viral moments (Paris Hilton at Versace, most recently), we wait with bated breath to see Zlatan embraced by luxury fashion at large. Put Zlatan in the Acne Studios show, you cowards. Let him front a Ganni campaign. It would be, in a word, iconic.
Photo: Marc Piasecki/Getty Images.