The NWSL season is more than halfway done and the Portland Thorns players have ramped their prematch fits up a notch. I announced the Stumptown Streetwear Championships on May 14th. Fans will vote for their favorites for the three awards to recognize the best pre-match outfits of the season.

The three awards are the Most Versatile Performance, The Holy Grail and the Stumptown Streetwear Champion. The MVP is for the player who shows the greatest versatility throughout the season, The Holy Grail is awarded to the player with the best single outfit of the season, and the Stumptown Streetwear Champion is awarded to the Thorns’ most stylish player.

All three of these awards will be voted on by the fans on Twitter. In the first Stumptown Streetwear article, I named defender Kelli Hubly the favorite to win the Stumptown Streetwear Championship based on her outfits throughout the 2021 NWSL Challenge Cup. Now it’s time to check in with the Thorns to see what the players have been up to on the pre-match runway.

The Walk & The Pose

Showing off a pre-match look isn’t just about the outfit itself. It’s about how a player presents their fit to the photographer. Everyone has their own clothing style and the same is true of the way they show off their look.

Plenty of players have their own signature walk but no one strikes a pose like forward Tyler Lussi. Lussi loves to strike a runway pose like she loves a statement jacket, and they usually pair well to make Lussi a strong contender for one of the three style awards.

Lussi consistently tops off her looks with a jacket that steals the show. Her black jacket with red and white stripes added a splash of color to an otherwise killer color-block look.

Lussi showed off another statement jacket before the Thorns’ 2-1 win over the Orlando Pride. The white shoes, the white bag and the white jacket would’ve been enough to make this a great look but the cheetah print sleeves and pocket take it to a whole new level. And of course, Lussi knows it, striking a power pose in front of the Thorns’ social media team.

via the Portland Thorns’ Instagram Stories

She brought out a classic leather jacket before Portland beat Gotham 2-1 at Providence Park. Her look can be seen around the 43-second mark in the video below as she tries to pull Christine Sinclair back in front of the camera.

Lussi’s ability to strike a runway pose has not only put her outfits in the spotlight but has also inspired other teammates.

Making Waves

There has been a lot of talk about NWSL players and their prematch looks this year. It has even become a topic of conversation in various videos posted on the Thorns’ social media channels. The players have agreed that one player has ramped up her style game in recent weeks.

That player is Simone Charley. In Rocky Rodriguez’s Unfiltered Presented by Dutch Bros Coffee episode, she asked Olivia Moultrie who she thought had the best pregame outfits. Moultrie said, “Simone’s have been pretty good lately,” and Rodriguez nodded in agreement.

Best pregame outfits were also a topic of conversation in Edie Parsons’ interview with my Stumptown Streetwear favorite Kelli Hubly. Hubly said “I think I’m number one, obviously. And then Simone has been having some good outfits too.”

Here’s what all the hype is about. Charley has brought more versatility with her looks than almost anyone else on the team.

Charley’s most recent look (:39) displays her ability to mix things up. And it was a hit. GQ Sports featured it on their Instagram Stories.

It’s Gotta Be The Shoes

Soccer players’ money makers are their feet. So it makes sense that their shoe game would be top-notch. The players have dressed their feet for success which is made a whole lot easier to do so when you live 15 minutes from Nike’s headquarters.

The Thorns players have rocked some shoes that have sent fans into pandemonium and I have a feeling that players’ kicks could play a key role in The Holy Grail title.

Portland’s June 20th match against Kansas City was the day to flex the kicks. Becky Sauerbrunn came rolling up in some Adidas Yeezy Boost 750s. Portland may be the home of the Nike headquarters but it also houses the Adidas U.S. headquarters and Sauerbrunn clearly is making use of her Adidas deal.

But everyone knows who stole the sneaker show this season. It was none other than Olivia Moultrie. It turns out that when you sign a Nike deal at 13-years old, there are perks and one of those perks is getting access to the Air Jordan 1 High OG Dior sneaker.

This shoe is absolute grail material. It was dropped as part of a 2020 runway show in Miami. Dior and English fashion designer Kim Jones partnered with Jordan Brand to unveil the limited edition shoe. And we are talking really limited. There is a high and low edition and only 8,500 pairs were made of each. Olivia Moultrie is in elite sneakerhead company and put the world on notice when she strutted into Providence Park rocking these.

Craig Mitchelldyer/Thorns FC

As the race for the NWSL Shield heats up the pregame fits will too. There have been plenty of great style moments that I have outlined already and there are even more that you can see on the Thorns’ social media channels. Morgan Weaver did an Instagram takeover of GQ Sports, we have seen newbies like Yazmeen Ryan strut their style in front of a whole new audience, and we have seen so many others flex their fits for the camera. Here are some more examples:

So, who has impressed you with their stylistic choices so far this season? Who are your front runners for the Most Versatile Performance? The Holy Grail? The Stumptown Streetwear Champ?

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Throughout the season I will be keeping track of the pre-match outfits. If you spot one that you think needs mentioning share it with @grantlittle09 or @StumptownFooty.

The goal is to give out three awards at the end of the season and the winners will be up to the fans. The first award will be the MVP award or ‘Most Versatile Performance.’ This award will be given to the player that has shown the most stylistic range over the course of the season. The second title is ‘The Holy Grail’ award given to the player with the best single outfit of the season. The final, and most prestigious award, is the ‘Stumptown Streetwear Champ’ for the most fashionable player over the course of the 2021 season.

Is Hubly still the favorite or have the tides shifted? Share your predictions for each award in the comments below.