The Fashion Five: Coco Gauff “champion” in style game too amid Grand Slam breakthrough 

No. 1: Coco Gauff breaks the mold, with style, during career year

Coco Gauff showed remarkable progress during the second half of the 2023 season, lifting trophies in Washington D.C., Cincinnati and the US Open—her career first Grand Slam victory—over the course of one dream North American summer.

But all throughout the year her style has gotten people talking, too. Gauff, who was recently named the most marketable women's tennis player in the world and the world’s highest paid female athlete in 2023, arrived on the big stage in style— thanks in part to a unique partnership with sportswear giant New Balance.

Last year, she launched her first signature shoe with the Boston-based brand, debuting the “Coco CG1” shoes in the build-up to the US Open. Still the only active player on tour with her own signature shoe, Gauff’s design stood out due to the CG1’s unique basketball-inspired high-top profile, trendy colorways and drops, and personal details packed into every pair.

“I feel like a lot of athletes on this tour definitely deserve (their own signature shoe), so I feel very privileged that New Balance is giving me this opportunity, and I'm very appreciative of that," Gauff told Baseline.

“People who buy the product can kind of tell when a player puts their all into something. I think that's what makes it special with me and the relationship I have with New Balance.”

This year Gauff continued to expand her horizons with new CG1 designs, including the first off-court pair in the neon yellow “Fuzzy Ace”—shoes that captured the look and feel of a tennis ball with hairy suede uppers and white leather details. Gauff also rolled out a few fun surprises, including a black-on-purple “Spooky Season” colorway for Halloween, the American’s favorite holiday.

Other standout designs include the cool blue and green “Twisted Net” to contrast with the terre battue at Roland Garros, and her old-school New Balance 650s-inspired “New Vintage” for Wimbledon.

By the time Gauff arrived in New York City, the 19-year-old was in the middle of a hot streak and the eyes of the world seemed to be watching. That made the US Open the perfect stage for Gauff to shine—and for sponsor New Balance to roll out some of the year’s most eye-catching apparel.

The “City Brights'' collection featured a bright neon yellow crop top and skirt that fit right in with the city’s electrifying atmosphere, as well as a maroon colorway that mom Candi picked out to compliment Gauff’s skin tone. And of course, the look was complete with a matching pair of Coco CG1s.

“I honestly liked the US Open doubles kit that I played in… I really liked that,” Gauff said when asked about her favorite kits of the season. “I think I liked the maroon. I think I liked the neon kit more than the maroon but I wore the maroon during the day.”

After recording victories over Caroline Wozniacki, Jelena Ostapenko and Karolina Muchova, Gauff marched into the US Open final—and behind the scenes, the folks at New Balance were once again getting ready to steal the show. Up against incoming world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, the teenager mounted a comeback in the final to triumph 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.

During the emotional post-match scenes, cameras captured Gauff’s team changing into commemorative white t-shirts reading “Call Me Coco”—only the word “Coco” had been crossed out and replaced with the word “Champion”.

It’s a reference to New Balance’s first US Open campaign with tournament debutante Gauff in 2019, back when the brand helped introduce the tennis world to the 15-year-old phenom back when fans still weren’t sure whether to call her “Cori”, her given name or “Coco”, her nickname.

New Balance, Gauff’s apparel sponsor since the age of 14, cleared that up quickly with a simple but memorable t-shirt and a slogan that also found its way onto Gauff’s shoes. When Gauff went on to win the tournament four years later, the company brought back the same shirts with one important update—resulting in one of the smoothest Grand Slam marketing moments in recent years.

Off the court, fans have enjoyed seeing even more of Gauff’s youthful and on-trend style, too, especially during the teenager's post-US Open media tour.

The American was serving up “Barbiecore” with a hot fuschia-pink outfit for an on-site photoshoot at the BIllie Jean King National Tennis Center the evening of her victory. Gauff also posted up a storm on Instagram sharing her morning show media blitz, including a few shots of wearing an elegant emerald green dress with a high neck during a photoshoot at The Peninsula New York.

Later in the season Gauff turned heads again, this time during the WTA Finals players party in Cancun. Players were initially told to wear all-white for the WTA Finals players party—fitting for the Mexican resort town’s vibe—and Gauff understood the assignment perfectly, wearing Cult Gaia's Silvia dress in off-white linen featuring side cutouts lined with red faux-coral.