First off, if you're reading this, we love you and we don't care who knows it.

2025 marks 4 years of us obsessing over old clothes and growing this community from an IG account sharing vintage finds into... whatever we are now.

As we kick off 2025, we're taking a moment to celebrate the absolute heaters we witnessed in tunnels across sports this past year. From WNBA rookies to full-team efforts, it really feels like 2024 gave us some of the most memorable vintage moments we've ever seen. Let’s break it down.

WBB OWNS VINTAGE

For reasons we'll get into below, let us be the loudest about how insane women’s basketball players have been going with vintage in the tunnel.

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Earlier this year, we got the opportunity to curate a vintage Pacers jersey that became A'ja Wilson's NBA All-Star fit, where she coached the All-Star Celebrity Game in Indianapolis. This was one of the coolest moments of the year, even though we might be biased a bit.

Duke WBB's Ashlon Jackson wearing Kara Lawson's Monarchs jersey to honor her coach? That's how you do it. The gesture not only showed respect for Lawson's playing career but highlighted the growing appreciation for WNBA history among the next generation.

Nika Muhl in Swin Cash's Team USA jersey had us in our feelings. The UConn-to-WNBA-to-Olympic Gold pipeline stays undefeated and, frankly, unstoppable.

Phoenix Mercury favorite Sophie Cunningham proved that any jersey can be a jersey dress when you believe in yourself. Also, weird to think this Coyotes jersey is now a throwback, right? Does that Utah team have a name yet?

Coach Staley’s Philly Special

America's Coach pulled up in a Randall Cunningham Eagles jersey and reminded everyone why Philly and the rest of us loves her forever. Perfect fit. No notes.

Jordan Clarkson: Vintage MVP

Jordan Clarkson is likely a first-ballot Throwback Tunnel HOFer. The man's closet is like vintage sportswear Inception - spanning decades, sports, and continents. Nobody did it quite like Clarkson in 2024, from NBA warmups to all-over NHL jackets.

The Great Lions Throwback Takeover

The best Detroit Lions team of our lifetimes are winning both on and off the field. When the whole squad commits to Mitchell & Ness throwbacks, you know something special is happening. They look like they headed to the grand opening of a 40/40 Club or BET Spring Bling, in the best possible way.

Book's Detroit Love Letter

We weren’t familiar with Book’s vintage game before but this year, it quickly became clear that Devin Booker's Detroit sports obsession runs DEEP. The Red Wings jersey choice perfectly captured both his Michigan roots and the growing crossover appeal of vintage hockey jerseys in NBA circles.

International Heat Check

There is a small-but-growing group of people in our DMs lightweight bullying us to get into covering soccer (fine, "football"), and now we can't stop watching Jackson Irvine's Instagram.

His vintage kit collection is actually insane?

Lavine’s Ode to the 90s

Zach LaVine's Bulls pullover nearly slipped past us (eternal thanks to Carlito for the spot). Looks straight out of '96, and we mean that in the best way.

LOOKING BACK, LOOKING FORWARD

2024 was just the warmup. The vintage fits are getting better, the stories are getting deeper, and we predict that collegiate athletes will start to dominate this list in the future. Do not delude yourself into thinking this is a fad: Vintage sportswear isn’t going anywhere in 2025.

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If you've got friends who geek out over vintage sports gear like we do, or spend way too much time ID'ing random jerseys in tunnel pics... maybe forward this their way.

You (and they) belong here with us. Hit one of the share buttons up top, or forward them this newsletter and tell them to hit subscribe. We promise to keep it fun and never, ever judge their vintage collection (unless they're trying to pass off fakes as OG—then all bets are off).

We're building something cool here, and the more vintage heads we can get in on these conversations (and mysteries, speaking of which...), the better. Love you, mean it.

🕵️‍♂️ THE MYSTERY OF CLIFF ENGLE 🕵️‍♂️

Go grab a drink and set your phone to DND because we're about to dive into the strangest rabbit hole in vintage sportswear.

THE MYSTERY AT HAND: I'm literally wearing a Cliff Engle sweater as I write this. You probably know these sweaters - they're basically vintage sportswear royalty.

The Bears. Ditka. Every major college program. If you've been in the game, you've seen them. Hell, even non-sports brands know what’s up. A Cliff Engle was even in Aime Leon Dore’s first archival vintage collection.

Fun Fact: When ALD did this in 2021, they singlehandedly drove up the prices on Cliff sweaters. We know this, because we were buying them in bulk at the time. (We will never forgive you, ALD!)

…But here's the thing that's keeping me up at night: Cliff Engle doesn't exist.

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WHAT WE KNOW (IT'S NOT MUCH):

• Cliff Engle is not some long-dead white guy who loved sports sweaters. "Cliff Engle" is actually a play on former company HQ in Englewood Cliffs, NJ (clever, right?)

• They dominated the licensed sports gear game from 1986-1994 after getting their start with Disney products

  

   

  

  A Disney Cliff Engle

• They got huge thanks to Da Bears and Ditka in the '80s. The iconic “Ditka sweater” is a Cliff Engle!

THE INVESTIGATION SO FAR: Your boy has been DEEP in the research trenches. We're talking:

• LinkedIn stalking (used one of my precious InMails)

• Late-night trademark searches

• Holiday family time sacrificed for vintage sportswear research (not recommended)

BREAKTHROUGH MOMENT: Thanks to some elite detective work from the community (s/o to the legend @goodbirger, our boy Mick S and a few others), we've got our first solid lead:

The hunt is on.

BONUS HEAT: Massive shoutout to @goodbirger (the 🐐 of archival finds) for blessing us with these delightful vintage Cliff Engle ads.

JOIN THE CLIFF ENGLE TASK FORCE:This isn't just my mystery anymore - it's ours. Got info? Seen something suspicious? Found an old catalog in your uncle's basement? Hit my line, DM us, email us, send smoke signals - whatever works.

Featured Grails of the Week

We have an limited archive of curated vintage sportswear we sell to fund our content. If you see something you like, buy it so we can make more stuff you like. How’s that for a “value proposition”?

And as always, this is your weekly reminder that EVERYONE LOOKS GOOD IN VINTAGE SPORTSWEAR.

Let’s Connect!

Follow us for daily inspiration and deep dives: @GamedayGrails

Do you own a vintage-inspired sportswear brand we should be aware of? Reach out.

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