He is “one of the most stylish athletes in the world”, according to his partner on the French team Aurélien Tchouaméni. The full-back of the France team and FC Barcelona, Jules Koundé made his arrival at Clairefontaine one of the essential moments of the international breaks. The look he wears at his appearances is inevitably scrutinized and the young man seduces even the fashion world with his audacity and his heterogeneous combinations.
“Ibou (Konaté) wants the throne, but we know who the boss is,” laughs Ousmane Dembélé, pointing to Koundé during the show “The Bridge” hosted by Tchouaméni on YouTube. For the occasion, the Barcelona player is wearing a vintage FC Sochaux jersey from the 1980s.
The day Koundé showed up at the mini-parade at the Clairefontaine training center “in a crop-top and a skirt, he had won, it was over”, laughs “Dembouz”.
Fair play, Ibrahima Konaté bows but does not admit defeat. “Jules started off a little strong on this path,” he said with a smile in June 2024. “Now we’re going to try to dethrone him.”
This Monday arrival at the start of the Blues gatherings is now scrutinized well beyond the world of football, the players themselves nickname it “fashion week”.
“I’m aware that now people are impatient and wondering if I’m going to be eccentric,” Koundé smiles. He presented himself alternately with an orange tie over a leather jacket and heeled shoes or by matching moon boots with denim overalls and a mustard yellow fleece-bob set, photos devoured by his 4.6 million followers on Instagram.
“When it’s Jules, everything goes”
ELLE magazine even dedicated a series to him: “The style of Jules Koundé in ten photos”.
“When it’s Jules, everything goes. I went shopping with him: I didn’t take anything, he took everything,” laughs Dembélé.
“When we shot it for GQ, it was one of the most beautiful sessions in recent years,” says the head of the style section, Adrien Communier. “We were faced with someone who was willing to play the game, who wanted to push the limits.”
Blues defender Jules Koundé, upon his arrival at the Clairefontaine training center (Yvelines) on May 29, 2024, to prepare for the Euro © FRANCK FIFE / AFP
And the Blues right-back has an assertive style. “At the GQ France Men of the Year 2023 ceremony,” the journalist continues, “he wore a ‘Comme des Garcons’ piece, the brand had not lent him to wear in the evening, it was what he had in his wardrobe.”
The player confirms that he loves “digger”, that is to say looking for rare coins. “It contributes to disconnection,” he explains, “it’s one of the things I like to do in my free time. Doing research, reading up on fashion… It’s one of my passions.”
He’s even getting his hands dirty: he’s teamed up with Homies from Paris (HFP), by creator Oscar Goba Noël. “I always wanted to have my own clothing brand, to take care of the designs, the cuts, to discuss…” he explains.
“A very pronounced taste”
“There is marketing, there are undoubtedly agreements with brands that I don’t know about, but we feel that he gets his pieces from different houses. He has very pronounced taste”, estimates Marie-Laure Gutton, curator of the “Mode en Mouvement” exhibition at the Palais Galliera in Paris.
See alsoLegislative: Jules Kounde, a committed player
“It’s in good taste, it’s very current and it has references,” judges Maï Jarach, a young 21-year-old stylist who has notably created pieces from “upcycled” football jerseys (transformed and revalorized, editor’s note).
For Koundé, “the only person who should be happy with the way she is dressed is you. The rest, we don’t care. Even if it’s obviously nice to be able to be complimented.”
Jules Koundé at Clairefontaine in a vintage Blues tracksuit. © Franck Fife, AFP
The “sapper” of the Blues even responded to criticism from certain football commentators who spoke of a “circus” and “disguises” regarding the arrivals of internationals at Clairefontaine.
“Finally, gentlemen, you must not get carried away like this for so little,” he wrote on
At the next gathering, in November, he came in a Euro-1992 Blues parka, a tracksuit and crampons, out of self-mockery.
FC Barcelona also tried to slow it down by requiring all its players to arrive in club uniform. “But we always find ways,” laughs Koundé, who now “parades”… after matches, accompanied by a photographer, and publishes his photos. Like a prince.
With AFP
