World Cup 2026 teams arrive in designer suits, animal print and Birkin bags

Forty-eight teams began arriving across the United States, Canada and Mexico in early June, trading tracksuits for sharp tailoring, designer luggage and displays of local colour. Luxury houses are jostling to dress national teams — Nike paired with Jacquemus on France's travel wardrobe, and Loewe inked its first major sporting deal with Spain.

Even the opening ceremony was dressed to the nines, with Katy Perry performing in silver-fringed Stella McCartney. DR Congo made one of the loudest entrances, arriving in Houston in custom black suits trimmed with animal-printed sashes and cheetah-shaped brooches.

Designer Alvin Junior Mak created the suits and matching travel bags as a nod to the squad's nickname, Les Léopards. The trip was historic: DR Congo's first World Cup since 1974, when it became the first sub-Saharan African nation to qualify. France touched down at Boston Logan with a boutique's worth of Hermès, Chanel, Louis Vuitton and Goyard.

United States, Canada, Mexico, Houston, Boston Logan

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