Last year, Toronto FC and October’s Very Own first shook up the fashion scene in MLS with their initial collaboration to commemorate the arrival of Italian enigma Lorenzo Insigne. Fast forward just under a year and they’ve re-released the drop with a couple fresh additions.
We all know Drake to be a major sports fan. From sitting courtside and trash talking players to placing maniacal bets and creating his own recreational basketball league, Drizzy is perhaps the world’s most unapologetic patron of sport. So it’s certainly no surprise that his fashion label has entered the realm on multiple occasions.
OVO has built a reputation for fashion and sport collabs in the past few years, with more than a few memorable installments in their lineup. In addition to taking a closer look at the brand’s recent re-up with Toronto FC, we dive into its forays into other sports including basketball, hockey, and American football.
The OG OVO x Toronto FC Capsule Collection (2022): “Headlines”
The Lorenzo Insigne signing remains one of the biggest in the history of MLS, and Toronto FC knew it had something special on its hands. It only made sense to team up with Toronto’s favorite son, Drake, and make some magic.
The OG release was exclusive to Canada, much to the chagrin of fans worldwide, the majority of whom had nothing but rave reviews.
The capsule consisted of a hoodie, sweatpants, and tee set, all in red, white, and black colorways with a hat to match.
The designs for the first drop were fairly straightforward. The Toronto FC badge side by side with the OVO signature owl logo as the featured design and a fan-favorite second design with the owl wrapped in a Toronto FC team scarf.
Re-release (2023): “Major Distribution”
Even more than last year, the football world is engrossed in a fashion crossover, and MLS is no exception.
This edition of the capsule ditched the red colorway, but added a track jacket while maintaining the other articles of clothing. The key addition, of course, is that gorgeous Insigne design draped lovingly across the back of the hoodie and jacket.
The Old English font choice seems fitting, with the design featuring “Lorenzo il Magnifico,” both the Italian and Canadian flags, as well as the OVO owl slotted snuggly inside Insigne’s 24.
The other big difference keen-eyed fans may notice is that this year’s tees feature a massive OVO logo across the chest, flanked by the club badge and OVO owl.
Other t-shirts in the set couple the owl with the club’s badge on the chest, with “Toronto Football Club All For One” printed underneath.
Of course this release would not be complete without the now signature owl in the Toronto scarf design making its return, but this time on the hoodies. The capsule’s re-release was made available to fans worldwide last month but our guess is, it will not be long until it’s sold out.
Other OVO Collabs: “Best I Ever Had”
Since its inception over a decade ago, October’s Very Own has pushed the boundaries between pop culture, music, and fashion. It’s only grown since then, in parallel with founder Drake’s consistent meteoric rise to being one of the most recognizable brands in the world today.
There have been several collabs along the way, but for us, the sports crossovers have been particularly noteworthy.
OVO x Toronto Raptors x Mitchell & Ness
The mid 2010s saw the debut of the first major OVO sports collab, and to the surprise of absolutely no one, it was with Drake’s hometown Raptors.
Dubbed the “Drake Night” tees, this set was given out free to fans in January 2014 and is still highly coveted to this day. Since then, the Raptors and OVO partnered with clothing brand Mitchell & Ness to provide an extended drop and have continued to add to this collaboration with hit after hit.
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Not to mention the OVO city jersey that Nike rolled out for the Raptors to rock in the 2018-19 season. The Raptors have been the most involved sports team with OVO, to the point where their training center has been called The OVO Athletic Center since 2019.
OVO x NFL
Featuring limited edition varsity jackets, hoodies, and t-shirts, this collaboration was unveiled earlier this year featuring Drake’s longtime mentor, Lil Wayne.
It was a select drop, in the roll up to Super Bowl LVII and featured the Dallas Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, Miami Dolphins, Los Angeles Rams, Green Bay Packers, Buffalo Bills, and Las Vegas Raiders.
As is typically expected, not even two full months on, the collection is almost completely sold out.
OVO x Toronto Maple Leafs
Part of OVO’s fall/winter 2022 collection was the brand’s first link up with the NHL.
Dubbed “Celebrating Icons of Hockey” and featuring a varsity jacket limited to 250 pieces, this capsule collection was billed as the first of many still to come with other hockey franchises.
