Do you own a pair of slouchy, slightly washed-out pair of boot-cut jeans? Do you also own a pair of turf-ready, slightly scuffed tennis shoes à la Sambas or German Army Trainers? Most importantly, do you own a soccer jersey? It doesn’t matter if you have no idea what team it’s for. In fact, it’s probably better that way because this isn’t about sports — it’s about harnessing your inner hooligan.
You are now “bloke core.”
This TikTok trend, according to Brandon Huntley, the man who originated it, began on a whim last December when he “started getting back into soccer jerseys.” His first video, in which he was wearing the aforementioned boot-cut jeans, a blue soccer jersey (team unknown) and white Adidas Sambas, was also mostly a joke. But he’s since embraced the look and now genuinely likes it. “I’ve always loved soccer jerseys,” he explains, adding he played soccer at a club level for around 12 years. “I bought one and just decided that’s how I’d rock it.”
It took a few months for the fit to navigate the abyss of emerging TikTok fashion trends, but in the last month or so, it’s really caught on.
By definition, a bloke is a slang term for a common, everyday guy in the U.K., Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. It’s typically a term of endearment, their version of “bro.” As an aesthetic however, it’s a caricature of the way Americans see British dudes — simple, a bit sloppy, perpetually ready for a pint, and of course, always sporting their team’s colors.
If you came of age in the 1990s, listened to Oasis and read Nick Hornby novels, you’ve seen bloke core before. It became prevalent again in 2004 and 2005 after the release of Football Factory and Green Street Hooligans, two bloke-filled movies. Though back then, it was less about soccer jerseys and more about tracksuits and a hard look that was more bark than bite.
Thankfully, this latest iteration of bloke core doesn’t seem to have the same fook-it attitude. Huntley assures me, though, that the aesthetic still remains “extremely accessible.” All you really need is a soccer jersey to pair with jeans, jorts or even khakis.
I’d say that’s a pretty simple style gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooal!
Andrew Fiouzi
Andrew Fiouzi is a staff writer at MEL.
