The Fashion Five: Billie Jean King gets her due, and her hue, at the US Open
From Caroline Wozniacki’s US Open bodysuit to the jackets donned by BJK Cup winners, “Billie Blue” has been the color of the year in the tennis world.
No. 3: On the 50th anniversary of the WTA, “Billie Blue” takes over tennis
1973 would turn out to be a monumental year in the tennis world, and an even more historic one in women’s sports, thanks to Billie Jean King.
King famously called the player meeting on the eve of Wimbledon that would later become the Women’s Tennis Association, a move that allowed women’s tennis players to control their own destiny. That same year, King also successfully lobbied the US Open to award women’s and men’s champions equal prize money, paving the way for other Grand Slams to follow.
And of course, that’s the year that King faced Bobby Riggs at the Houston Astrodome in the Battle of the Sexes—a match that became the most-watched televised sporting event of all time.
Sporting a short embelished white dress designed by tennis fashion legend Ted Tinling, King took the court against Riggs wearing matching Adidas shoes in a particularly memorable shade of blue.
Her 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 victory marked a watershed moment for women’s tennis and women’s sport as a whole—and the outfit she wore would be just as iconic, as the dress is now a part of the Smithsonian’s collection at the National Museum of American History.
And as the tennis world celebrated the 50th anniversary of these historic milestones throughout 2023, that particular shade of “Billie Bllue” soon became the hottest color in the sport.
No one wore it better or more boldly than Caroline Wozniacki, who was playing in her first Grand Slam tournament back from maternity leave at the US Open.
In honor of the tournament’s equal prize money anniversary, her sponsor Adidas rolled out a US Open collection featuring modular garments made to be customized, with removable and reversible pieces. Most of which, of course, came in the optional shade of “Billie Blue”—a nod to King’s legacy and her history with the brand.
Wozniacki stood out from the rest of the Adidas players by rocking the outfit’s bodysuit underlayer at its own standalone piece, opting to go without the black-and-white skirt layer.
“I mean, it's the US Open. Why not?” Wozniacki said when asked about her outfit. “I think that's my motto at the moment. At this point we may as well make a statement… That's where I'm at.”
The rest of the Dane’s look turned heads too. Wozniacki paid attention to all the details, from her “Billie Blue”-inspired manicure to her set of gold and diamond necklaces that read “Olivia” and “James”—the names of her two children, aged two and 11 months.
But that wasn’t the last we saw of “Billie Blue” in 2023, as the season concluded with one of the sport's newest traditions.
After Canada’s victory over Italy at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, players including Leylah Fernandez, Gabriela Dabrowski and Eugenie Bouchard donned bright blue winner’s jackets as they received their trophies.
“The green Masters jacket has been famous since 1937, and I wanted to create something just as iconic for women athletes,” designer Tory Burch told Baseline via email last year.
“We chose a special shade of ‘Billie Blue’ as a nod to the blue sneakers and tennis dresses Billie Jean wore throughout her career.”