When SOPHNET and Nike created the world’s first fictional Football team: FCRB
Pioneer in fashion design, Hirofumi Kiyonaga, of SOPHNET and Uniform Experiment, is world-renowned for his fusion of functional yet street styling.
Although unknown to many, Hirofumi has a second burning passion that resides within him. One that involves less walking down runways, and instead involves sprinting down a field. This passion we are referring to is Football. And much like his career within the fashion industry, when it comes to football, Hirofumi doesn’t miss.
Hirofumi has always been a massive fan of football and has always dreamed about having his own professional team for which he could design the kits, on and off the pitch. When the upcoming Japanese 2002 World Cup was on the horizon, he wanted to support the tournament in a way that he knew how – by incorporating his love of design into the DNA of the sport.
A fantasied football club under the name ‘FC. Real Bristol’ was brought to life in 1999 by Hirofumi to fuel his hunger for being a part of the sport and to also fill a gap in the market of functional yet stylish football apparel. It focuses on producing high quality and stylish garments that could be worn on and off the pitch, donning Hirofumi’s traditional flare.
The inspiration behind the name seems to be derived from the Japanese designer's love of Bristol’s music scene. Pioneers of the scene, Massive Attack, were so influential to him that he even paid homage to them within the FCRB logo, utilising a very similar design.
It wasn’t long until behemoths, Nike, saw the potential and got involved. Nike decided to develop the gear alongside SOPHNET founder Hirofumi, and now over 20 years on the brand is still developing as a powerhouse imaginary club; since its birth, they have pumped out collaborations with the likes of BAPE, Mastermind and Fragment to name a few.
The imaginary club would soon come to exist in the physical world when Hirofumi was allowed to sponsor his local football club, Oita Trinita, which he watches play every home game. From fabricated football club to worldwide selling functional brand, FCRB shoots, and they score.
