When Dior unveiled its Summer 2026 campaign on 4 January, the face leading it wasn’t an actor or a model. It was Kylian Mbappé. The Kylian Mbappé Dior partnership is now at the centre of Jonathan Anderson’s first campaign as the house’s creative director, making the Real Madrid forward one of the most visible faces of a new era at one of fashion’s biggest names (Hypebeast).
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How Kylian Mbappé Became the Face of Dior
The relationship started almost as soon as Anderson arrived. Dior named him creative director of its women’s, men’s and haute couture collections on 2 June 2025, making him the first designer to lead all three lines since Christian Dior himself.
Three weeks later, on 24 June, Anderson’s first move was to announce Mbappé as a Dior ambassador. The teaser films showed Mbappé in Anderson’s first looks: a dove-grey herringbone jacket, a blue striped shirt and a red-and-blue club tie (FashionNetwork).
“Kylian Mbappé is the voice of a generation,” Anderson said, calling him “the perfect ambassador for this house.”
Inside the Dior Summer 2026 Campaign
The campaign was shot by photographer David Sims and presents a “Dior clique” rather than a single star. Mbappé appears alongside actors Greta Lee, Louis Garrel and Paul Kircher, and Sunday Rose.
The idea is a “study on character”: getting dressed as a daily performance and a way to become a new version of yourself. It’s shot in black and white and in colour, in grand old Parisian-style interiors with wood panelling and worn parquet floors. Key pieces include:
- a reworked Bar jacket, Dior’s most famous silhouette, worn with Delft shorts
- denim with oversized knitted capes
- tasselled Lady Dior bags and bow-detailed Cigale shoes
Why It Matters
Footballers have fronted fashion campaigns for decades, but usually for sportswear or as one-off faces. This is different. Mbappé is part of the first chapter of a new creative director’s vision, alongside actors, at a house where the ambassador role usually goes to Hollywood.
It’s part of a wider shift. Lewis Hamilton has worn Dior on and off the grid, Lamine Yamal has his own American Eagle collection, and Vinícius Jr is shaping his own style away from football. Top athletes are no longer just dressed by fashion houses. They’re part of how those houses want to be seen.
Kylian Mbappé × Dior: Key Facts
| Ambassador announced | 24 June 2025 |
| Creative director | Jonathan Anderson (appointed 2 June 2025) |
| Campaign launched | 4 January 2026 |
| Photographer | David Sims |
| Also starring | Greta Lee, Louis Garrel, Paul Kircher, Sunday Rose |
| Key pieces | Bar jacket, Lady Dior bag, Cigale shoes |
Read next on AthleteStyles:
- Lewis Hamilton in Dior: A Refined Fashion Statement
- Lamine Yamal Launches His Debut American Eagle Collection
- Kylian Mbappé’s Summer Vacation Style
Sources: Hypebeast, FashionNetwork, Dior.
