BTS's V Named Leading Face of Champion's 'True Champion' Campaign

V of BTS has been announced as the leading face of Champion's "True Champion" campaign, representing the sportswear brand globally. The announcement came on Monday, August 10, according to Billboard.

V joins a cast of campaign figures that spans music, sport and fashion: Romeo Beckham, Danna Paola, Kyle Kuzma, Sofi Tukker, Megan Keller, Bella Sims and Jaalen Best. Champion shared photos of V modelling a dark blue hoodie for the campaign on Instagram, giving fans a first look at the partnership's visual direction.

The deal lands V among the most visible celebrities in Champion's current marketing push. He is no stranger to fashion campaigns — he previously served as a global ambassador for Cartier and Celine, two of the most recognised luxury houses in the world. In May, V and his BTS bandmates teamed up with Nike for a customisable collection tied to their ARIRANG World Tour, a collaboration that merged the group's tour branding with Nike's design platform.

Champion itself is under relatively new ownership. Authentic Brands Group acquired the brand in 2024, in a transaction valued at $1.2 billion that was announced on June 5 of that year, when Hanesbrands agreed to sell the label it had built into a global sportswear name (CNBC). Stefani Fleurant, executive VP of marketing, sport and lifestyle at Authentic Brands Group, oversees the brand's campaign strategy in its post-acquisition phase.

For V, the Champion deal adds another global brand to a portfolio that already spans luxury jewellery, high fashion and sportswear. For Champion, placing a member of one of the world's biggest music acts at the front of a campaign signals the brand's intent to compete for cultural visibility under its new owner.

BTS's commercial record backs that profile. The group has notched seven No. 1s on the Billboard Hot 100, the chart that tracks the most-consumed songs in the US each week. Their most recent album, ARIRANG, spent three weeks atop the Billboard 200, the equivalent album sales chart that combines physical sales, downloads and streaming activity into a single ranking.

All chart figures and campaign details are sourced to Billboard's August 10 report.