Ace came up with the team concept for this range. We took the unmistakable colours and football identity of Boca Juniors, then reworked the branding through DEF’s world. The inspiration was Diego Maradona: the man with the Hand of God.
Maradona played with a ferocity that made every touch feel dangerous. Low to the ground, impossible to shake off the ball, he could turn a crowded pitch into his own playground. There was skill, nerve and an appetite to win that you could feel through the screen.
The 1986 game against England captured it all. The Hand of God, followed by a run through the defence that barely looked possible. Audacity and extraordinary ability, minutes apart. He went on to captain Argentina to the World Cup title.
His life away from football carried its own chaos. Cocaine addiction, bans, run-ins with the law and years of public controversy became part of his story. That turbulent side sat alongside the player people adored: a footballer whose talent and force of personality could lift an entire team.
We brought those contradictions into the graphics. Boca’s navy and gold, a reworked ACAB crest, DEF marks and Quaaludes across the chest in the position of a team sponsor. The shirts carried the look of a football uniform and the attitude of a DEF range.
The idea grew beyond the jersey into tees, longsleeves, crews, shorts, track pants and caps. A whole team wardrobe, built around the same colours and identity.
Our tribute to a wild, complicated football icon. The touch, the fight, the chaos — and the ability to make winning feel possible.
