Ralph Lauren Winter Olympics opening and closing ceremony costumes
USAT’s Sam Cardona Norberg unveils the Ralph Lauren costumes for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.
take sports seriously
MILAN — Milan Fashion Week kicked off last month, but Italy’s fashion capital is looking for new styles as more than 90 countries prepare to make the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics their runways.
Each country will do its best — and the most fashionable — Friday’s opening ceremony brought a step forward, a scene that has grown in opulence and atmosphere over the years. The Parade of Nations provides a unique opportunity for each delegation to showcase its culture and traditions on a national stage through ceremonial costume.
The first Olympic medals won’t be awarded until Saturday, but there are some serious style points up for grabs. Which country has the best Opening Ceremony look? Which costume is the most controversial? I went through each country’s lookbook and presented them with a variety of top-notch awards. (By the way, I’m Sydney. Thank you!)
Check out our style guide for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.
🏆Best Dressed:
team mongolia
Take a moment to pick your jaw up off the floor. Mongolia stole the show with its intricate ceremonial costumes at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where the country once again achieved glorious honors. Goyol Cashmere has created a Mongolian deer that effortlessly blends Mongolian identity and tradition with traditional clothing that retains a modern feel. The opening ceremony look was inspired by the Great Mongol Empire of the 13th to 15th centuries, “one of the most powerful eras in our country’s history,” Goyol Kasimir explains. This outfit incorporates Mongolian cashmere, silk trim and embroidery for a gorgeous finish that’s worth celebrating.
🥈Runner:
team france
Le Coq Sportif takes French elegance to a new level with an opening ceremony look that rivals high fashion couture. The French sportswear company has swapped the country’s iconic tricolor for a cooler color palette inspired by mountain peaks that seems appropriate for the Winter Olympics. The Ceremony collection includes a hooded cream Sahara puffer jacket featuring a topographic graphic motif in muted blue, white and red. I’m especially a fan of layers, which add drama and depth to a silhouette. Le Coq Sportif balances modern flair with vintage flair by bringing back the frosty blue snowsuit from its 1976 archives, bringing an effortlessly chic nod to the past. Bravo.
🧸 Most wearable:
team usa
Ralph Lauren has been Team USA’s go-to designer for 20 years, and the Milan-Cortina Winter Games will be no different. Team USA’s attire for the 2024 Paris Games has proven divisive, but the US Winter Olympics team has the potential to unite the internet like Marvel’s Avengers, if it’s possible.
Ralph Lauren’s opening ceremony look features a winter-white wool coat with wooden toggles, an American flag wool turtleneck sweater, and tailored wool pants for a clean, patriotic vibe. The uniform is completed with knitted mittens and brown suede alpine boots with red laces. Each item is “proudly made in the USA,” Ralph Lauren added, adding that they have the potential to become winter wardrobe staples.
💥Most polarizing:
team canada
Canadian sports apparel giant Lululemon chose a maroon quilted vest with all-over red maple leaves and an oversized symbol for the opening ceremony. Some people criticize Lululemon’s avant-garde approach, but personally, I think the big maple leaves work because they’re memorable, whether you like it or not. This motif screams Canada, which is the main point of the national parade.
Canada’s podium outfit, a bright red puffer coat with a topographical map printed on it, highlighted the country’s landscape, but Lululemon design director Katherine LeBlanc joked that it was “the brightest red chemically possible to make into fabric.” Lululemon added a pop of color with green inspired by Canada’s glaciers and icebergs.
Lululemon has collaborated with Japan’s top athletes, including hockey player Sidney Crosby, to create a collection that is both functional and stylish. This gear also includes braille, magnetic zippers, and adaptive shoes.
🫂Most comfortable:
team great britain
Ben Sherman has mastered a stylish yet functional Olympic collection that you can wear post-Olympic. The British clothing brand outfitted the national team in cream-colored wool-blend knit jackets that feature a continuing Union flag motif. Striped accents give this relaxed zip-up a sophisticated look, making it an instant classic. Ben Sharman, who has created Britain’s ceremony look for four consecutive Games, said: “Each element has warmth and detail, reflecting a timeless British aesthetic.”
Remember when British diver Tom Daley made headlines for knitting in the stands at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics? Now, the five-time Olympic medalist donned a hand-knitted scarf and winter hat to bear the flag at the opening and closing ceremonies. Mr Daly raised the Union flag at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Honorable Mention: Norwegian Team
Dale of Norway’s 70-year history of creating Olympic sweaters dates back to the 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, and the 2026 Milan-Cortina Games marks a full-circle moment for the brand. Our half-zip knitwear features pure Norwegian wool and traditional Scandinavian geometric patterns, making it a great addition to anyone’s closet.
💭 Most Meaningful
italian team
- designer: EA7 Emporio Armani
The Italian national team will wear EA7 Emporio Armani for their home country’s 2026 Olympics, marking the Italian fashion house’s eighth overall collection for the Summer/Winter Olympics, and the last collection created by namesake Giorgio Armani before his death at the age of 91 on September 4, 2025. The country’s Olympic uniform features a white padded jacket with “Italia” embroidered in opalescent letters on the back, and a red, white and green collar.
In May, shortly before his death, Giorgio Armani said: “Milan and the Olympic and Paralympic Games. I could not think of a more exciting collaboration that brings together the city that has given me so much and so much sport.” “Working for and with Italian athletes is always a pleasure and a source of great pride. I chose a single color, white, to evoke harmony with the snow-capped mountains. Perhaps the most important of the sporting values is respect, which I distilled into a vision of simplicity, clarity and purity.”
🪄Best Feel:
team australia
- designer: Sportscraft (opening ceremony), Karbon, XTM (competition wear)
The Australian team ditched its signature gold for the opening ceremony, opting instead for a white cable sweater and wool-blend blazer designed by Sportscraft Formalwear, featuring a crest and gold buttons. The names of all of Australia’s Winter Olympians are sewn into the lining of the blazer, and Australian Olympic curler Taari Gill said the special touch “sends shivers down her spine”.
“Seeing our names among so many famous Olympians gives me a shiver down my spine and a deep sense of gratitude,” said Olympic curler Tali Gill. “It’s a reminder of how far we’ve come and how special it is to stand as part of something so much bigger than ourselves.”
💡Most innovative:
new zealand
New Zealand athletes will literally be fighting their hearts out. The black jackets for the opening ceremony in Kathmandu were decorated with silver ferns on the back, and each had a QR code woven into the inside. “Scanning the code will connect you to a digital platform filled with messages of support from New Zealanders and fans around the world, reminding you that our team of 5 million is right there with you on your journey,” the New Zealand Olympic Committee said in a statement.
💢 The edgiest:
czech
Alpine Pro continued the long-standing Czech tradition of featuring Czech artists in the country’s Olympic collection. This Olympic cycle highlights motifs from the famous Czech graphic designer Wojtek Preisig combined with retro elements from the 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo. The finished product is a series of knit sweaters and winter jackets featuring bold, distinctive patterns in blue, red, white and yellow. The “Rashkowka” hat, a huge hit in this country and named after ski jumper Jiří Rashka’s 1968 Olympic victory, will also be revived.
Lead designer Aneshka Berekova said she wanted the collection to have a “loungewear vibe, evoking the feel of a winter vacation in the mountains, combining iconic pieces with a more contemporary approach.”
Get to the heart of the news quickly with the USA TODAY app. Download award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, e-newspapers, and more.
