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Diana At Wetherby School© GettyImages

The story behind Princess Diana’s iconic Eagles Varsity jacket

Few people understood why Princess Diana would wear a jacket of an American Football team


Maria Loreto
Senior Writer
OCTOBER 26, 2023 5:34 PM EDT

Princess Diana was a style icon, someone who’s outfits we still look to for inspiration. During the 80s and 90s, she sported some incredible fashion pieces, including a memorable Philadelphia Eagles jacket. The outfit was worn on several occasions, adding a layer of cool to her often sophisticated outfits.

Diana At Wetherby School© GettyImages
Princess Diana wearing her Eagles jacket

A Harper’s Bazaar article fleshes out the jacket’s story, and how it ended up in Princess Diana’s hands. The story traces the jacket to the moment when Diana and Jack Edelstein, a statistician and spotter for the Eagles, met at the funeral of Grace Kelly, the Princess of Monaco. Diana and Jack started to talk, with Edelstein sharing some of what they talked about following her death. "She thought football was like soccer," said Edelstein according to the Philadelphia Daily News.

"She asked, 'What are your colors?' I said, 'Green and silver.' She said, 'Those are my favorite colors.'" Edelstein wanted to send her some t-shirts but once the Eagles’ owner,Leonard Hyman Tose, learned of her interest, more sophisticated plans were put in motion. Tose gave her a custom jacket. Diana reportedly sent Edelstein a note, thanking him for the jacket and sharing that she’d been wearing it around.

Diana At Wetherby School© GettyImages
Princess Diana wearing her Eagles jacket

Ken Wharfe, Diana’s former bodyguard, revealed that she liked to wear the jacket around as a statement. “Diana always craved the normalcy. By being a member of the royal family, that was almost impossible. Neither William or Harry, when they were kids, wanted their mother to sort of dress in her finery, take them to school. So all Diana would do is be as casual as possible,” he said on special edition of Sunday NFL rundown.

“Diana loved to be different, this was her style. It sort of showed the public and her children that she was a normal mother in a style that people liked."