Which Sports are Considered Elite and Why?
It’s no secret that professional sports are one of the areas of modern show business. The games are crowded, they are shown on TV, and the equipment manufacturers make millions because the fans are ready to buy any clothing from the collaborations. Sports such as tennis, golf, yachting, horseback riding and even chess have become popular today due to the special aesthetics and atmosphere of luxury that has developed around them, although before they were only practised by European aristocrats. In the following article, we will tell how such sports games set the style bar and which athletes set the tone.
How Tennis Became Popular?
For more than a hundred years, tennis has held the status of the most commercial and highly paid game. The most successful people on the planet are engaged in it, and regular classes will require large financial investments. According to Forbes, the top twenty richest athletes in the world include two tennis players – Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. In addition to their professionalism, they can also boast of an excellent sense of style.
Federer prefers clothes in warm shades, knows how to combine colours with each other, and loves comfort. He has a lot of polo shirts in his wardrobe that do not restrict the movement of trousers and tracksuits.
Nadal, on the contrary, loves brightness not only on the court but also in life. He has many shirts, shorts and various headbands in his arsenal.
Now the aristocratic aura at the mention of tennis is preserved thanks to the Wimbledon tournament. It is an unofficial world championship. Here it is customary to treat the players with respect. Judges use the addresses “Miss”, “Mrs” and “Mr”, in the same way, the names of tennis players are reflected on the scoreboard. All players are required to enter the court in white uniforms. Spectators are offered strawberries with cream and champagne. Also, a real ball and a gala dinner for tennis players are held, and you can meet the queen herself in the stands.
It should also be pointed out that with the development of tennis, the following sport has become one of the most attractive disciplines in betting. If you visit any leading online gambling platform you will immediately see, that betting on tennis is present everywhere. The sport grabs the attention of many people worldwide and betting is no exception.
Thanks to tennis, short pleated skirts, tops and golfs appeared in the women’s wardrobe. Also, because of tennis, we are all obsessed with polo shirts.
Golf for Business
An even more aristocratic game than tennis, golf has an impeccable reputation that ensures commercial and spectator success. The first athlete in the world, whose net worth exceeded one billion dollars, was golfer Tiger Woods. For a long time, he has been one of the highest-paid athletes in the world.
His style is quite mature. He wears neutral sweatshirts, vests and jeans without unnecessary details. He loves the classics, so his style can be found in shirts and jackets.
In principle, golf is associated with success, because it is possible to build an entire business empire on it. This game allows you to produce clubs, balls and equipment, offer coaching services, equip fields and enter into contracts for transportation by golf carts. On average, the price of one field is $2 million, and their maintenance provides employment and income to thousands of people.
Golf has taught us to tuck shirts into shorts or trousers and cover our heads with baseball caps. Golfers like to choose a bottom with a bright print, most often it is a cage, and socks must also look out of the shoes, otherwise, this is a bad tone.
Yachting for Gamblers
Yachting is considered an elite sport. It has a specific reason – King Charles II of Great Britain was the first person to show people that yachting can be both relaxing and enjoyable. Yet, the ship itself costs around €400,000, so only rich and influential people will be able to buy it.
Yachting is historically a favourite entertainment for noble people. Skilful yachtsmen in that period of time are Prince Heinrich of Denmark, King Constantine of Greece and King Juan Carlos of Spain.
Despite the fact that yachting is still not the most popular sport, there are yachtsmen who have achieved incredible success and set a few fashionable rules. For example, the Englishman Ben Ainslie, who wins medals at all the Summer Olympic Games from 1996 to 2012. Apart from his swimming suit, he likes to wear blue shirts with lots of embroidered prints, paired with a powerful sports watch.
Yachting contributed to the emergence of tight overalls and waterproof clothing made of lycra or elastane.
Royal Equestrian
Today the equestrian sport has become a fashionable hobby for powerful people. Queen Elizabeth II of Britain, Princess Anne and her daughter Zara Phillips, Emir of Dubai Mohamed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and Russian President Vladimir Putin are its admirers.
Horse racing in general was also one of the first sports, that widely become prevalent among punters. This is a discipline that accepted bets on horses alongside boxing events. This sport is equally popular as football in Great Britain to this day.
Equestrian sport is very beautiful and noble, not only because of the well-groomed appearance of the horses but also because of the style of the jockeys. We want to highlight the Swiss Steve Guerdat, who follows the trends and looks fashionable in his clothes. He likes to wear skinny white pants, turtlenecks, brightly coloured polos and baseball caps. We can highlight watches with leather straps and gold details and braided belts of his accessories.
Thanks to equestrian sports, we fell in love with over the knee boots and pantsuits, and some began to add caps and hats to their looks.
The Bottom Line
Many of you may be wondering why football is not on the abovementioned list. While the latter is popular in the world, and you will not find any country, where football is not followed, still the popularity is not always proportional to prestige. The same can be said about basketball, rugby, and MMA. These are the sports with many followers, but they come nowhere close in terms of eliteness to golf, tennis, or yachting.