Thom Browne Knows Football

Game Day in Central Park Thanksgiving, 2019

A browne family tradition. every thanksgiving in allentown, pa, thom and his family would gather for a game of football in the backyard. a tossing of the pigskin before the big thanksgiving day feast. now, the tradition moves to new york city, where thom has gathered friends and family at central park’s north meadow for an annual day of thanksgiving football. it’s navy vs. grey.

kitted out in a thanksgiving day capsule of thom browne bermuda short suits in loopback jersey cotton, thom browne pleated skirts in loopback jersey, thom browne ties in jersey, button down jersey shirts in white, thom browne thermals, thom browne varsity jackets, oversized thom browne four bar cardigans, and thom browne sneakers in white and football white and brown. spectators lee pace, gabriella karefa-johnson, derek blasberg, alessandra codinha, nick haramis, choe hartstein, liam little, ali bird, and mark guiducci cheer on teams of grey and navy.

a coin is flipped by referee joe holder, a whistle blown, the game begins. lil uzi vert, three steps into the pocket, reaches back, a spiraling arc. beatrice domond and steff yotka run an end route. dan donigan cuts inside. an all out dash by nikki ogunnaike, lucas zwirner, and luke gilford. ian bradley, noah wunsch, and lameka fox keep the defense at bay. a scrum of navy and grey, the hand of ella balinska reaches out, plucks a grey thom browne wilson football from the ether. interception.

scuffs of mud, stains of grass. pom poms. the sharp rack-a-tack-tat of a snare. morse code pops of a coaches whistle. cass bird calls a flea flicker. mitch ryan to chris black, black back to ryan. the defense scrambles. samuel hine and marcos fecchino run interference. deon hinton goes long. justine biticon fakes, kimberly drew jukes. mario carbone goes wide. bastien mcbride in the endzone. the pass. a touchdown.

spectators in raptures. yves mathieu and rocky harwood rouse the crowd with a dance. cheerleaders richie shazam, walker bun- ting, gia seo, ruby aldridge, philippa price, cristina piccone, jeremy o. harris, and chloe wise erupt in a spirited fight song. a celebra- tion around a canine mascot wearing his thom browne bandana.

a triumphant day. an ode to favorite traditions spent with friends and family. turkey sandwiches and pumpkin cookies from chef mario carbone of parm & carbone. players and spectators, referees and team mascots. one last hurrah, then off for a bit of rest and a well-earned thanksgiving feast.

The football capsule collection, available at Thom Browne stores, thombrowne.com, and Bergdorf Goodman November 28th, 2019.