In 2025, sporty prep has emerged as an intriguing fashion trend. This trend was seen on spring runways and can be incorporated into your summer looks. This trend builds on and diverges from the preppy fashion of the 1980s. In the 1980s, preppy looks were carefully arranged. Fashion gestures as seemingly casual as sweaters draped around shoulders were made with precise attention.
Currently, there is flexibility in how to approach sporty prep fashion. New combinations of articles of clothing are being explored. For instance, running shorts can be worn with blazers. Miu Miu is a fashion brand that is exploring sporty prep. The brand incorporated the look into a recent fashion show. This trend is also being embraced with creativity by Gen Z. Layering is part of the Gen Z sporty prep aesthetic.
Sporty Prep Updates Preppy Style Choices
According to Marie Claire, preppy outfits worn in the 1980s were “cookie-cutter precise.” One ubiquitous feature of a preppy ensemble of this era was a sweater. This sweater was often placed casually yet perfectly over the wearer’s shoulders. Shirts with buttons and popped collars were also styled with care. Plaid was a popular design. Marie Claire states: “Plaids came in every possible pastel, like seafoam, salmon, and butter yellows.”
The preppy looks of yore are the basis of a fashion trend in 2025. Sporty prep is a style philosophy that has emerged. Outfits on spring fashion runways have indicated general enthusiasm for this aesthetic. Now, the summer of 2025 has become a sporty prep summer. The current preppy trend builds on the fashion potential of meticulous looks of the 1980s. However, these looks are not based on rule-following precision. Marie Claire explains these fashion statements “don’t follow rules at all.”
Unexpected Clothing Combinations
InStyle states: “Over the past year, fashion has gone where it has never gone before.” In 2025, fashion designers are working with an intense level of enthusiasm about sports. The sports enthusiasm is fusing with enthusiasm for preppy styles. Sporty prep in 2025 combines articles of clothing in innovative ways. According to InStyle, these style innovations are creating “athlesiure-adjacent looks.”
You can wear your beloved clothing in new ways to achieve sporty prep style. A bubble skirt is one article of clothing that can be incorporated into this aesthetic. This skirt can pair well with a preppy button-down shirt in a pastel color. You can also add a pair of cute sneakers to add a sporty element. Running shorts can also be included in sporty prep looks. InStyle enthuses that shorts for exercise are “easy to style with blouses, button-downs, and blazers.”
Adding in Sporty Fashion Nuances
Vogue explains: “The worlds of style and sports have a surprising amount of synergy.” In the fashion world, recent 2025 runway shows have had clothing full of sporty details. A sporty prep trendsetter this season has been Miu Miu. Vogue reports that Miu Miu has paired “typical preppy fare” with windbreakers and utility-focused sandals.
You can draw inspiration from Miu Miu’s incorporation of sporty clothing into a preppy look. Vogue states: “At Miu Miu, classic track jackets were worn in unexpected ways.” These jackets are useful and versatile and can add sporty energy to classically preppy attire. A sports-focused jacket can be paired, for instance, with a pleated midi skirt. Loafers or sandals can pull this sporty prep look together.
How a New Generation Embraces the Trend
PureWow explores the enthusiasm of Gen Z for the latest iteration of the preppy aesthetic. According to PureWow, Gen Z combines “timeless wardrobe staples with a street style edit.” Layering is a big component of the Gen Z interpretation of today’s preppy trend. For instance, PureWow suggests: “Try a V-neck sweater over a tank, topped with a blazer.”
