Polo shirts are a classic wardrobe essential found in the closet of men and women all across the globe. These athleisure shirts have a history that goes back to over a hundred years. Polo has always been associated with style and etiquette. Earlier, players wore elaborate and fancy garments consisting of shirts and heavily padded jackets, which were not very practical and were rather uncomfortable. The need to transition from such apparel to something that was more rider-friendly and modern without compromising on elegance led to the origin of Polo shirts. According to premium American clothing brand Brooks Brothers, it is likely that it’s one of the first items of sports clothing adapted to be worn off the field and onto the street. The history of modern polo originates from Manipal, India. The players initially wore long-sleeved, round-neck shirts. A collar was added to the design of the shirt to protect the players’ neck from the heat, but the flapping collars caused a distraction to the players, which resulted in the addition of buttons to the shirts. Thus, the buttoned-down polo shirts were introduced.
The British officers, during the Raj, noticed the sport and developed a fascination for it. It was during this period that the sport made its way to England along with the sport’s typical uniform, or the Polo shirt. The design underwent changes to suit the climate of the UK. In 1896, John E Brooks, then president of Brooks Brothers, attended a Polo match on his trip to England and spotted the buttoned-down shirts. Upon seeing the unique collars of the shirt, Brooks knew it was something he had to take back with him. In 1900, the American population caught hold of the buttoned-down shirts and quickly replaced the rigid pre-sized detachable collars. The design developed by Brooks Brothers was launched under the name “The Original Polo Buttoned-Down”. It was perfect for everyday wear.
Lacoste is among the most famous Polo shirts’ brand. The little crocodile on the left of the shirts has received recognition in the fashion world. The Polo shirts, as we see today, were first introduced by Jean René Lacoste, a French Tennis player who dominated the sport in the 1920s and 1930s and was nicknamed “crocodile” for the way he dealt with his opponents. In a 1979 interview with People magazine, Lacoste shares the story of how the original polo came to being. “One day I noticed my friend, the Marquis of Cholmondeley, wearing a polo shirt on the court,” recalled René. He found it so practical that he commissioned an English tailor to design a few such shirts in cotton and wool. Soon everyone was wearing them. A player’s performance has a lot to do with comfortable clothing. In the 1920s, Lacoste designed for himself a white tennis shirt with short sleeves and a few buttons. Since the design was originally for himself, he placed the crocodile on the left chest, for a personalized touch. Lacoste was quick to identify the business opportunity that his design had and soon collaborated with André Gillier, the biggest knitwear manufacturer of the time. In 1933, the two started mass producing the tennis shirts under the name La Chemise Lacoste. The shirts became the standard uniform for the sport. The design was welcomed and adopted on the Polo field, so much so that even though the modern design of Polo Shirts comes from tennis, it is more popularly referred to as a Polo Shirt than a Tennis Shirt.
Ralph Lauren
We cannot talk about Polo Shirts without mentioning Ralph Lauren. Even though it was the Argentinian Polo Player Lewis Lacey who first sold Polo Shirts with a Polo Player Logo back in 1920, Ralph Lauren launched his Polo Shirts line in 1972. Founded in 1967, the brand launched its first men’s clothing collection under the name of the sport itself. Lauren believed Polo to be an aspirational sport and thus used a Polo Player in motion as the brand’s logo. In a conversation with Oprah Winfrey in 2002, Lauren talked about the iconic Polo logo of the brand: “My symbol was always a polo player because I liked sports, and polo has a stylishness to it.” It was five years after the brand was founded that it adapted the Polo shirt design and made it available in 24 vibrant colours. The colour-filled Polos soon became a staple American style.
The brand marketed the shirt so well that it became a desired product that was showcased as a luxury and status symbol. As per GQ magazine: “Ralph Lauren is the undisputed master of all-American prep. From the pop-colour and pony-clad polo shirts with which he made his name to the trademark Navajo blanket sweat tops, distressed blue jeans and sharp-shouldered power suits, no one appreciates American style better.” The polo shirt is not only a signature garment for a Polo player, but is worn by players of many different sports such as tennis and golf. The design so perfectly blends the casual vibe of a T-shirt and the formal look of a button-down, that it is the go-to garment for almost all. Recognized as the ultimate “business casuals”, the design has also been adopted as a uniform in many educational institutions.
