Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka has once again blended high fashion and elite tennis, turning heads at the 2026 French Open with a dramatic two-layered outfit inspired by the sparkling night sky over Paris’ iconic Eiffel Tower — and backing up the viral entrance with a straight-set first-round win.
The 28-year-old Japanese star, who has built a reputation for show-stopping custom looks at major tournaments, made her entrance onto Court Suzanne Lenglen in a dramatic outer ensemble: a structured black corset paired with a flowing pleated skirt that swept across the red clay. Beneath this moody, elegant outer layer, Osaka hid a showstopping custom gold tennis dress covered in light-catching sequins that glinted under the bright Parisian sun. In a post-match interview, Osaka shared that the outfit’s design was directly inspired by the twinkling evening light display that makes the Eiffel Tower one of the most visited landmarks in the world. “When I first saw it, I felt like I look like the Eiffel Tower at night time when it’s bright,” she explained.
The layered look was a collaborative design: the sustainable black outer pieces came from London-based fashion designer Kevin Germanier, while the glittering gold base dress was custom-created by Osaka’s long-time apparel partner Nike. Osaka admitted that she had one major concern ahead of her opening match: the intense reflection from the sequins when hit by direct sunlight. She revealed she brought two plain backup dresses to the court, worried tournament umpires would ask her to change over distraction concerns. “I was a little scared the umpire was going to kick me off the court,” she joked. “Thankfully I didn’t have to wear them.”
Osaka’s fashion-forward entrance won praise from across the tennis world, including from women’s top seed Aryna Sabalenka, who watched the entrance live on broadcast. “This is sparkling. I love it. I love that she is expressing herself and feels confident,” Sabalenka said. “That’s the beauty of the fashion world, there’s space for anything and I love that she’s bringing it on court.”
Former British top-ranked player Annabel Croft noted that pulling off a high-profile custom outfit on a Grand Slam stage takes a unique level of confidence that few players can match. “If you out there in an extraordinary outfit, you’ve got to live up to that and have the confidence to play in it and give the crowd the tennis as well as the outfit,” Croft told BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra. “Naomi can handle it. She really loves it and she’s not fazed by it.”
Osaka delivered on both fronts: after the viral entrance, she played solid, consistent tennis to defeat Germany’s Laura Siegemund 6-3, 7-6 (7-3) to secure her spot in the tournament’s second round. She will next face Croatia’s Donna Vekic for a place in the third round.
This French Open look continues Osaka’s recent tradition of memorable Grand Slam entrance outfits. At the 2026 Australian Open earlier this year, she stepped onto court in a jellyfish-inspired look that she dedicated to her two-year-old daughter Shai, and previous majors have seen her debut bold designs ranging from bow-accented lime green ensembles to tie-dye statement pieces. Osaka says these pre-match entrances are the one part of her job where she gets to embrace the performative side of professional sports. “Sometimes people say athletes are in show business or entertainers or whatever,” she said. “For me, Grand Slam walk-ons are the only time that I possibly feel like I’m an entertainer.”
Osaka is no stranger to pushing fashion boundaries in tennis, a trend that can be traced back decades through trailblazing players like Serena and Venus Williams. The image gallery accompanying this event highlights iconic boundary-pushing tennis fashion moments: Serena Williams’ all-black studded ensemble at the 2004 US Open, her 2018 French Open black catsuit (which she said made her feel like a “superhero”), Venus Williams’ black-and-red corset lace dress at the 2010 French Open, and Maria Sharapova’s tuxedo-inspired twist on Wimbledon’s all-white dress code in 2008, placing Osaka’s latest design firmly in a legacy of athletes using fashion to express creativity on court.
Since returning to the tour following the birth of her daughter in 2023, Osaka has mounted a remarkable career comeback, climbing back into the world’s top 20 rankings and reaching the semi-finals of the 2025 US Open.