1911 - The Fila Brothers are open for business! The brothers open their business in the small city of Biella in the shadows of the Alps, they began their trade in the clothing business by making some of the finest fabrics in Europe many of which were used by the big fashion houses of that era. With so much knowledge of manufacturing specialist fabrics it was only a matter of time before Fila became a brand in its own right.
Fast forward to the 70s and Fila Clothing moves into Athletics and Tennis sports, producing polo tee shirts and tracksuits. The first sports line in the history of Fila was the 'White Line' range, contrary to the cheeky suggestion it was dedicated to Tennis and during that era the dress code on the courts was strictly white! The 'White Line' range ultimately made Fila a huge name in tennis. The brand then went on to introduce the 'snow time', 'Aqua Time' and 'White Rock', ranges for skiing, swimming and mountaineering.
During the 70s Fila started to be represented by some of the world's finest sporting legends. On the tennis courts Bjorn Borg, a 6th time French Open Champion and 5th time winner at Wimbledon was an ambassador for the brand, together with the legendary John McEnroe who wears Fila later on that decade. Not only did Fila seem to back the best tennis players but also champions of the slopes, with the likes of Ingmar Stenmark who was the overall champion of Alpine Skiing winning over 86 world title during his career, and mountaineers such as Giorgio Bertone who also helped create the White Rock range which he personally tested in Sierra Nevada.
During the previous decade of the 70s Fila emerges with enormous backing from some of the world's greatest athletes which gave to Fila a huge public audience and attention worldwide. Bring on the 80s and the designs become brighter and bolder, and Fila go crazy with footwear.
During the 80s the Boris Becker logo is born and the brands iconic colourways, peacoat Chinese red, white and blue are showcased. The brands use of bold colours and designs never seen on the courts before and can be found in re-released in their Spring Summer 2011 range found on field9, with styles such as Trieste, Settanta and Monte Carlo. It is during this time that the brand develops fabrics called 'piquet' and the revolutionary 'Jesery' fabric. With this fabric knowledge it is no wonder that so many athletes are queuing up to be brand ambassadors
The brand continued to have success not only in the tennis, skiing, swimming etc but also Basket Ball, with the legend Grant Hill, Boxing with the Heavyweight Riddick Bowe, they also began a campaign to find future marathon runners in Kenya helping them to achieve success in their native countries. During 2000 Fila and Ferrari together sign a sponsorship deal with Michael Schumaker for the Ferrari Formula 1 team, after that success they go on to sponsor the Ducati Superbike team and with rider Neil Hodgson go on to win the championship.
Fila have always been committed to making exceptional sportswear. Some of the world's most famous players of today still proudly wear the F logo on their chests, Kim Clijsters, Dmitry Tursunov, Janko Tipsarevi, James Ward and Colin Fleming to name but a few.
In 2008 the Brand started to manufacture trainers, they sign a deal to make a performance and lifestyle footwear range heavily influenced by Wimbledon. The kids of Britain went crazy over the range and so began the birth of Fila being worn not only by athletes but on the streets.
During the Millennium Fila re-released its main designs and classics such as the Match Polo under the label 'Fila Vintage' which was launched as a true Heritage brand using iconic designs from the Fila achieves of the 80s. In the winter you will see the colours Chinese red, phantom grey and Navy, during the summer months its yellow, white and sky blue. The Match polo was brought back and features in each season. For a limited time we are paying homage to the Match Polo by giving a discount on our Chinese red and phantom grey styles at field9. Also the release of the Navy and yellow Johannesburgh almost has a nautical feel to it, bright colourways lightweight nylon with two tone mesh lining carrying the famous F box logo, this jacket would be perfect for summer festivals to make you stand out from the crowd.
The brand was again on our screens in movies such as the big British hits, 'The Business' with Danny Dyer rocking the original Fila Tracksuit and 'The Firm'. Fila Vintage is a retro classic sportswear, the brand then introduce 'Fila Gold' the range is a much cleaner with minimal branding considered to have a modern aspect and feel. Field9 look forward to working and representing the brand in the future and are always excited to see what styles are yet to come. To keep up to date on all our latest arrivals - or the Fila Vintage Sale - go to Field9.com.