The sweatshirt started on the football field. Designed for guys who liked to sweat. In 1926, Benjamin Russell Jr. swapped itchy wool jerseys for cotton, giving rise to Russell Athletic. By the '70s and '80s, sportswear had moved well beyond the sidelines. Hip-hop artists like Run-DMC, Tupac, and later Missy Elliott turned tracksuits and bold logos into cultural currency, proving that athletic wear belonged just as much on stage and in the street as it did in the locker room.