As sports have progressed into the modern age, not only has equipment and technology improved, but so has the style of players. In the past players in most sports were forced to follow strict regulations on uniforms, with mandatory sock lengths and restrictions on accessories. However, as players became superstars being paid millions of dollars many organizations decided it would be easier to create more lax guidelines for players than to have to constantly shell out fines. This meant that many players have been able to create their own on-field style and create new trends for other athletes. However, it is still heavily disputed which sport has the best drip. However, I feel it is time to analyze and rank the past and present swag of all three major American sports, Football, Basketball, and Baseball.

In third place comes Baseball. Despite being Americas past-time, Baseball is heavily held back by its traditional nature. In the early days of Baseball, players were afforded almost no freedom on what they could wear. The set uniform was stirrups just below the knees, a well fitting jersey and cap and essentially no accessories were allowed. However, as time passed Baseball players began stretching the barrier of style in the game, with athletes beginning to wear wrist tape, arm sleeves, different lengths and sizes of pants and jerseys, and large gold chains, as well as athletes like Manny Ramirez pioneering a baggy style with an unbuttoned jersey. In the modern day, some of the flashiest players in sports, such as Ronald Acuña Jr. and Fernando Tatís Jr. reign over the sport with crazy colors and outrageous equipment combinations, continuing to push the boundaries of what is acceptable in the sport. As well, custom equipment has added heavily to Baseball’s style with players being able to create everything from gloves to sunglasses with their own personal flair to it. However, baseball is heavily limited  due to the past lack of drip in the sport, as well as a lack of originality, with many popular accessories such as tape, compression sleeves, and high socks being usable in most other sports.

Coming in at number two is football. Despite the wide arrange of styles and accessories offered by each position in football, it falls into a similar trap as baseball with a lack of drip in the past heavily affecting the sport now. Despite players such as Erick Dickerson who revolutionized layering of accessories and styles, the overall trends of the league stayed largely similar to that of baseball, with players being forced to follow strict guidelines such as keeping their socks at a certain length as well as having restrictions on facemask patterns and visor colors. However, drip in football absolutely exploded in recent years with players like Odell Beckham Jr., Alvin Kamara, and Jalen Ramsey, completely revolutionizing the swag of modern players. As well, unlike baseball where some positions are heavily limited on what they can wear, football allows for almost any position to get some action, with even the big boys on the line such as offensive lineman Trent Williams, who was awarded 2021 offensive line swag king by Instagram user football.equipment, getting an opportunity to show their style. Additionally, football has arguably more customization options than baseball with everything from their helmets to what kind of socks they want to wear. However, while football may seem like the pinnacle of athletic drip, there is one sport that reigns supreme over all American athletics.

Coming in at number one as the drippiest all time American sport is basketball. Basketball has always been at the forefront of athletic swag from the beginning, with players such as Hakeem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain being some of the first to look good while playing good. As well, basketball players were some of the first to popularize wristbands and shooting sleeves for athletes, as

well as essentially inventing signature equipment lines for athletes through Michael Jordan. With the Jordan 1’s in 1985, Jordan established the ability for athletes to create self tailored equipment lines not only for themselves, but for others to buy and wear. Even today, Jordan colorways are being worn by not just athletes, but average joes as well displaying how Jordan’s swag was so impressive, it transcended sports itself turning him into a fashion icon. As well, basketball is heavily responsible for swaying style in the world outside of sports with companies such as And-1, Nike, and Adidas capitalizing on the stars of the game and the overall stylability of basketball uniforms in real life to their advantage. Despite basketball not having as rich of a selection of accessories as a sport such as football it still manages to stand above the others not only for it’s versatility, but for the sheer cultural impact that swag in basketball has had on the world. In the end, basketball truly takes the cake of drippiest American sport.