Last night in Manchester, Haider Ackermann presented his collaborative Fila collection in the city’s most infamous warehouse. Home to renowned club night The Warehouse Project, The Depot was transformed into a sleek white runway to showcase the Colombian-born French designer’s rave-fuelled sportswear mash-up. 

Combining Ackermann’s talent for precise tailoring with Fila’s sporting heritage made for a collection steeped in the brilliance of duality. Core elements of an athlete’s wardrobe arrived in the form of windbreakers, slouchy tracksuits and form-fitting bodysuits while blazers and bomber jackets were crafted in strong silhouettes to offer a contemporary formality. Inspired by the city’s historical connection to the world of music and sport, elements of the Haçienda’s rave scene, Factory Records and Britpop’s favourite brothers filtered through. Mastering technical layering and minimal design, colour set the energy as the show began with a series of striking white looks, melting into a sea of fuchsia pink, neon green and acid yellow, closing the collection with a selection of contrasting black and white tones. 

Balaclavas, swimming caps and goggles came with a futuristic-edge, while Björn Borg headbands swung towards Fila’s tennis roots. Haider Ackermann and Fila branding was present throughout, with logos embossed across sleeves and leggings. The collaboration pushed the boundaries of experimentation with its impossible-to-define nature, but ultimately it was a pulsating nod to the infectious energy of rave culture and an unrivalled passion for sport. On the front row sat a slew of international celebrities, but most pertinently Joy Division and New Order’s Bernard Sumner – a Salford icon who knows a thing or two about getting Manchester hearts racing.