How to Build Your Professional Wardrobe as a Woman in Sports

By: Bailey Massey

Edited By: Kylie Augis

Entering an industry primarily dominated by men is scary enough on its own. Figuring out an outfit to wear when networking, interviewing, and showing up to work each day is a whole other story. Before industry professionals get to speak with you, the first thing they take notice of and make a judgment on is your outfit and overall appearance. So, taking the extra 5 or 10 minutes in the morning to make sure you look your absolute best is critical. This article goes over different tips and outfit suggestions for various professional occasions that you, as a woman in sports, will undoubtedly attend throughout your career.

Square One–Interview Essentials

Interviews are the first and most important step when trying to advance your career. This is where your potential new boss will get to see you for the very first time, so you need to make sure you’re presenting yourself well. This new boss will form an opinion on you before you even open your mouth solely based on what you wear. So, the right outfit will help that opinion be a good one. Here are some outfit ideas and essentials for an interview:

• Button down long sleeved solid colored top (fully buttoned or only one button undone)

• Satin/silk long sleeved blouse

• Double breasted blazer of solid color

• High waisted pleated pants/slacks

• Closed-toed heels with a height of somewheres between 1-3 inches max

• Small handbag

• Watch

BONUS TIP: Don’t wear sneakers to an interview!!

Working in Front Office

If you land a job working in the front office of a sports team, you’ll always have eyes on you. Here are some wardrobe essentials below for any work day:

• Pencil dress (no v necks)

• Closed-toed heels with a height of somewheres between 1-3 inches max

• Long sleeve lapel button blazer

• **Optional belt over the dress

Working as a Journalist

As a journalist, you’re on your feet a lot. This is one of those careers where comfort is key. But, just because you should stress comfort doesn’t mean your outfit can’t be cute.

• Leather pants

• Flats or knee-length boots or heels with a 1-3 inch maximum

• Casual soft tee or solid color long sleeved button down top

• Chunky statement bracelet

Working in Social Media - Business Casual

If you work socials for a sports team, you’re not really out and about all day long. You’re probably working inside an office, and not out in the field working in front of professionals. Even though you may not be working in a nitty gritty environment like other careers in this industry, the need to dress professionally is still very much there. Here’s an outfit idea for all the social media girlies:

• Patterned long sleeved blouse

• High waisted slacks

• Belt

• Closed-toed heels with a height of somewheres between 1-3 inches max

• Chunky statement necklace

Working as a Photographer

Being a photographer is another career where you’re moving around nonstop. You need to have an outfit that will allow you to be comfortable no matter where you are or what you’re doing. Professionalism isn’t as key with this job, truthfully. You have more wiggle room to express yourself through your outfit as a photographer and more freedom with your clothing choices too. Here’s one example of what I would wear as a photographer in sports:

• Turtleneck sweater

• High waisted “fun” pants (fun pattern, color, style, etc.)

• Air forces or other plain white sneakers

• Belt

• Chunky earrings

• Simple necklace

BONUS TIP: Don’t wear heels!!

Working in Community Relations

Community relations has some leighway for wearing fashionable outfits. Wearing business casual as a woman in community relations is definitely acceptable. Here’s an outfit idea for all the girls who work in this field:

• Modest bodysuit (no low cut, but really any sleeve length is acceptable)

• High waisted pants

• Mules or flats or heeled booties

• Statement necklace

• Small handbag

• **Optional headband

Working in Marketing

I might be a little biased when I say this is my favorite section. I originally was a Marketing major going into college because I thought getting a job in sports was too difficult to pursue. This past year, I switched to a Sports Communications major with a Marketing minor. Here’s what I would wear if I scored a job that combined all my areas of interest into one:

• 2 piece suit (get creative, don’t just go right for black!)

• Button down long sleeved top

• Heels (can be colorful too!)

• Jewelry to accessorize (but keep it not flashy)

Working as a Reporter

I look up to so many different female reporters in sports. These are the kind of women who inspired me to pursue this career. One of my favorite reporters, since I’m a Philly fan, is Taryn Hatcher. If I were a reporter, I’d definitely try to model my look after one of hers. She’s always so stylish yet put together. Based off of one of her looks, here’s the outfit I curated:

• Long sleeved solid color blouse

• Midi length skirt or above the knee length skirt (basic, not too flashy)

• Nude stockings

• Heels higher than 3 inches (basic colors for this look)

• Chunky earrings

Closet Staples for Any Career in Sports

No matter where you end up in sports, there’s some basics that you could benefit from having on hand. I’ve accumulated a list below of items I didn’t mention in any previous outfits. I also included accessory staples too!

• Heeled booties–black, tan, gray, and/or white

• Bodysuits–sleeveless, long sleeved, short sleeved; any neckline but nothing super low cut; any colors and patterns are cute too!

• Sweater dresses

• Maxi dresses

• Leather blazer

• Wide leg pants

• High waisted midi skirts

• Heeled sandals

• Breasted coat

• Blazer dress

• Glasses (sunglasses and bluelight)

• Claw clips

• Jeans–any color of blue but nothing too ripped

• A shoulder bag

• Blazer mids or hightop sneakers

• Comfy sneakers–basic colors to go with everything

• Merch from your team/org–baseball caps!!, hoodies, t-shirts, etc.

• Fun and basic jewelry

To Wrap Things Up…

I hope this article provided some helpful insight as to how to build your professional wardrobe! I tried to be as detailed as possible, attempting to leave nothing up for guessing. If you would like different outfit ideas, Girls Club actually has an Amazon Storefront! You can access it by clicking here. It’s so easy to get stressed out over picking out clothes, especially if you’re putting way too much thought into it. I even have used google and Instagram (women in sports’ accounts) for professional outfit inspo. When picking out an outfit, as long as you keep it classy and professional (to an extent), you should be fine. Good luck in your career! Make sure to tag Sports Girls Club in any game day pics to potentially be featured on our socials.