How to Date Vintage Nike Clothing by the Label
Dating vintage Nike clothing can be tricky. Nike has used dozens of different labels over the years, with variations depending on where the garment was manufactured, the type of clothing and the market it was made for.
There isn’t one single Nike label that suddenly changed on a particular date, so labels are normally best used to give an approximate era rather than an exact year.
Here are some of the labels we regularly come across on vintage Nike sportswear.
1970s to Early 1980s Nike Labels
Some of the earliest Nike clothing labels are very simple woven tags featuring the Nike name with the swoosh underneath.
A particularly nice example is the white label with:
NIKE
SPORTSWEAR
MADE IN THE U.K.
These older labels can feature a contrasting coloured swoosh, including the blue and orange combination shown in our examples.
UK-made Nike clothing is particularly interesting to vintage sportswear collectors. Labels from this period often feel noticeably different from later mass-produced tags, with simple woven construction and very little additional information.
Look for: simple woven labels, Nike and swoosh branding, Made in UK wording and relatively basic sizing information.
1980s Nike Sportswear Labels
During the 1980s, Nike Sportswear labels appeared in several different colour combinations.
Dark blue woven labels with the Nike swoosh and wording such as:
SPORTSWEAR
MADE IN THE U.K.
are commonly found on older tracksuits, sweatshirts, jackets and other sportswear.
The country of manufacture is a useful clue. Vintage Nike was produced in countries including the UK and USA before manufacturing became increasingly global.
Again, the exact label design can overlap between years, so the construction of the garment, zip manufacturer and overall styling should also be considered.
Late 1980s to Early 1990s Made in USA Labels
Another label collectors regularly look for is the grey Nike tag with a red Nike logo and swoosh.
Many of these are marked:
MADE IN U.S.A.
These are commonly associated with late-1980s and early-1990s Nike clothing.
They are particularly desirable when found on vintage sweatshirts, T-shirts and sportswear in good original condition.
The grey background and red embroidered branding make these labels quite easy to recognise once you've seen a few.
1990s Nike Labels
By the 1990s, Nike labels became more varied.
One style we regularly see uses a dark navy or blue woven background with a large Nike logo and swoosh, with the garment size shown separately on the label.
Labels like the XL example pictured here are typical of the style collectors associate with vintage 1990s Nike sportswear.
During this period there were many different Nike ranges being produced at the same time, so don't rely on colour alone when dating a piece.
Don't Date Nike Clothing From the Label Alone
The label is one of the best clues, but we always look at the whole garment.
Things that can help include the country of manufacture, zip type, stitching, fabric, embroidered logos, care labels, style of the garment and any product or factory codes present.
It's also important to remember that Nike labels sometimes overlap between periods. Two genuine Nike garments made only a few years apart can have surprisingly different tags.
For that reason we'd normally describe a piece as “circa 1980s” or “early 1990s” unless there is additional evidence that gives us a more precise date.
Vintage Nike at Rustic Warehouse Norfolk
We regularly source vintage Nike alongside Adidas, Fila and other classic sportswear brands.
Part of the fun is finding unusual older pieces and working out when and where they were made. The labels are often one of the first places we look.
As we find more variations, we'll continue adding examples to our vintage sportswear archive.