Pope Leo XIV Makes Vanity Fair's 2026 Best-Dressed List — in the 'Originals'
Pope Leo XIV, the Chicago-born 70-year-old pontiff, has landed on Vanity Fair's 2026 Best Dressed List — the magazine's first such ranking in a decade — placed in the "originals" category alongside Spike Lee, Björk and Rosalía. Vanity Fair praised him for taking papal style "to heavenly heights." The Guardian
The list honours 70 people across five sections: originals, perennials, professionals, duos, and the future. Vanity Fair's style correspondent José Criales-Unzueta worked on compiling the selections, chosen by the magazine's staff. Vanity Fair
What caught the magazine's eye was not couture. The pope's most memorable look, as Vanity Fair describes it, was a simple white cassock — the ankle-length garment that is the everyday uniform of the papacy — styled with a pair of Nike trainers. He was first spotted wearing the trainers in a still from Leone a Roma, a Vatican-produced documentary retracing his time in Rome. The Guardian
The details build a picture of a man who dresses down by Vatican standards. He prefers simple black oxford shoes to the traditional red papal slippers worn by previous pontiffs. He wears a discontinued Swiss-made quartz watch and carries his own battered briefcase. In June 2025 he wore a White Sox baseball cap over his papal cap for a general audience in St Peter's Square. The Guardian
For formal occasions he turns to Italian designer Filippo Sorcinelli, who also created liturgical vestments — the ceremonial robes worn for Mass — for Popes Benedict XVI and Francis. The Guardian
This is the second time during his pontificate that Pope Leo XIV has appeared on a major fashion magazine's best-dressed list. EWTN News
The "originals" category, as Vanity Fair defines it, features dressers who are outlandish and innovative. The pope keeps company there with filmmaker Spike Lee, Spanish singer Rosalía, Icelandic musician Björk, figure skater Alysa Liu, museum director Thelma Golden, art collector Colby Mugrabi, critic Hilton Als, costume designer Sandy Powell, and French singer Yseult. Vanity Fair
The "perennials" section honours enduring style: Grace Jones, Nicole Kidman, Tom Ford, Tracee Ellis Ross, Chloë Sevigny, Lenny Kravitz, and Lauren Santo Domingo. The "professionals" — people who work in fashion — include Alessandro Michele, Marc Jacobs, Miuccia Prada, Kendall Jenner, Gabriella Karefa-Johnson, Anok Yai, Rachel Tashjian, and Julia Sarr-Jamois. The "duos" category pairs Rihanna with A$AP Rocky, Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron, Kim Kardashian and North West, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Zendaya and Law Roach, and Timothée Chalamet with Kylie Jenner. "The future" spotlights younger names including Blue Ivy Carter, Olympia of Greece, Tyla, and Erling Haaland. Vanity Fair
The pope also has his own Instagram account, where his public appearances — cassock, oxfords, and the occasional baseball cap included — reach a global audience. The Guardian
