For the Love of the Game: Fashion and Sport Collided at the Players Pre-Met Gala Dinner

Vladimir Roitfeld, Lauren WasserPhoto: Tyler Matthew Oyer

From “Fashion’s Biggest Night” to “The First Monday in May,” the Costume Institute’s starry benefit is known by a few choice nicknames. On Sunday evening, none seemed more fitting than “the Super Bowl of Fashion,” as designers, tunnel walk regulars, and models gathered for a warmup dinner with Players magazine

“We want to create a community with Players that is at the intersection of sports and fashion,” said editor-in-chief Vladimir Roitfeld, who launched the print and digital platform last year with a glossy issue guest edited by Dwayne Wade and a Spike Lee cover lensed by the legendary Mario Sorrenti.

The celebration took place at new Fifth Avenue private members’ club Moss, where Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb and Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Hartman joined Met Gala host committee member Lauren Wasser, designers Ludovic de Saint Sernin, Patricio Campillo, and photographer Sebastian Faena. Before sitting down to dinner, the crowd mingled over tamarind, lime, and mezcal Mosscalita cocktails by Clase Azul, and enjoyed tastings of the distiller’s newest sipping tequila.

Whether they last saw each other on the field, the step-and-repeat, or during fashion week, the evening gave the crowd a chance to reconnect in the midst of the most party-packed 24 hours of the year. “I haven’t stopped moving,” admitted Wasser, who’d also attended Vogue’s First Friday kickoff party.

The meal unfolded at a candle-lit tablescape, decorated with Christofle silver and porcelan, as the crowd shut out the chaos of the outside world and kept the energy relaxed and unhurried. The menu was a delectable three-course collaboration between chef Angela Zeng, of Moss, and Paris-based chef and culinary producer Nicolo D’Alessandro. A dessert of genmaicha ice cream plated atop a goat cheese granita and cacao granola gave the crew cause to linger a little longer.

“I feel that maybe we are on the right track,” Roitfeld said of the evening and the possibilities it hints at for the publication’s future. “We want to bring something fresh, and a new vision [to the table],” he continued.

The last word of the night came from Lamb, who threw big ‘fit energy in his signature sunglasses and a brocade-embroidered Ann Demeulemeester military jacket. “I’m in an era where the internet is everything—what you put out is who you are. I’m athletic, and I love that,” said the MVP. “But I do enjoy playing dress-up too.”