The first pair of sweatpants was introduced in the 1920s by
Émile Camuset, the founder of
Le Coq Sportif. These were simple knitted gray
jersey pants that allowed athletes to stretch and run comfortably. Sweatpants became commonplace at the
Olympic Games by the late 1930s, and were seen on many athletes in the decades that followed.
Adidas introduced the
tracksuit that combined the sweatpants with a track top in 1964, which helped popularize athletic fashion. The rise of
fitness culture, as well as the birth of
hip hop in 1980s America, led to the popularization of sweatpants as both leisurewear and
streetwear. College students also contributed to sweatpants' rise in popularity in the United States. Since the 1910s, "sportswear" has been a staple in college campus style and in the 1970s and 80s designers began reimagining the "
jersey knit fabric that had been used for gym garb" into clothes for students' everyday wear. Despite their rise in popular culture, sweatpants were often criticized in mainstream media in the 1990s and early 2000s; in the American sitcom
Seinfeld, the title character, Jerry, tells his friend "you're telling the world you've given up" when he appears in sweatpants. Fashion shifted during the
COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting increase in
remote work. Sales of sweatpants have increased since 2019, and many high-end fashion brands have moved toward creating simpler, athletic-casual inspired looks. == Culture ==