Since its introduction in the 1920s, the polo shirt has become a staple around the world. From professional sports and education to leisure and catwalk fashion, the polo shirt remains one of the most popular and versatile pieces of clothing in existence. But how did this garment get the name ‘polo shirt’ in the first place?
In this blog, we’ll take a closer look at the humble polo shirt and how exactly it acquired this moniker!
The history of the polo shirt
If you had to guess, you would probably assume that the polo shirt got its name as a result of being worn by polo players, right? Well, no – if you do a bit of research, you will find that the polo shirt was first worn by tennis players, making the common name a misnomer.
Back in the 1920s, the common tennis uniform (referred to as ‘tennis whites’) consisted of a long-sleeved white dress shirt paired with dress trousers and a tie. As you can probably imagine, this was not very comfortable for the tennis players who had to run around in the hot sun all day! But fashion was considered more important than functionality in those days, so tennis players continued to don this uniform…until a man named Jean René Lacoste changed the course of fashion history.
Unlike the other tennis stars, Lacoste refused to continue playing in the traditional uncomfortable tennis uniform and instead developed the first polo shirt. Instead of wearing a top made from heavy woven fabrics, he opted for one made from a knit pique that allowed for greater movement whilst playing. Rather than the button-down collar of the dress shirt, Lacoste preferred an unstarched ribbed collar, which he flipped up to protect his neck from the beating sun. Finally, the long sleeves were removed and replaced with short, cuffed sleeves that enabled his arms to move more freely.
The reinvented tennis uniform designed by Lacoste was first debuted during the 1926 US Open – which Lacoste won, causing his idea to spread like wildfire. Responding to this massive popularity, he formed The Lacoste Shirt Company, whose crocodile logo quickly became recognised on a global scale and is still famous to this very day.
But why do we call it a polo shirt and not a tennis shirt?
Since the first polo shirt was worn by Lacoste, a tennis player, you’d think that the garment would carry the name of either the sport or the man – but as it happened, neither stuck.
As more practical clothes began to catch on in the tennis world, other sports started to follow suit, adopting more practical uniforms that offered a greater level of comfort. Polo players were among the athletes who started wearing Lacoste’s design, and for some strange reason, the name ‘polo shirt’ became more popular than ‘tennis shirt’. Before long, even tennis stars were starting to use this name.
So why is a polo shirt called a polo shirt? Simply because people preferred that name to ‘tennis shirt’!
Our range of polo shirts
Here at Class Workwear, we provide a wide range of high-quality polo shirts fit for a variety of people and purposes. If you’re in the market for polos that you can wear around the office, the golf course or anywhere else, we are sure to have something for you.
And with our quick and easy embroidery service, you can customise your polo to feature your very own logo – fantastic!
Browse Our Polo Shirts
Photo from Pexels
