Shorts New Era Chicago Bulls Waffle Short

The story of the market leader in caps and sportswear began in 1920. A German immigrant and skilled craftsman named Ehrhardt Koch saw an opportunity to reshape the fashion headwear industry. Borrowing money from his sisters, he founded New Era Cap Co. in New York. At the time, baseball wasn’t as popular as it would become, but by 1932, the sport started to gain traction. Two years later, New Era secured a major contract with the Cleveland Indians, and the first baseball cap was born. It didn’t take long before New Era became the exclusive supplier of caps for MLB teams, a status that remains today. This was also when the iconic baseball cap received a redesign, which we now recognize as the 59FIFTY.

In the 1980s, New Era made a game-changing move—caps were no longer just for sports teams. The company started selling them to sports fans, and the trend of wearing baseball caps took off. Soon, everyone was sporting them, whether or not they were baseball fans or lived in a city where the sport was popular. As New Era expanded in the early 2000s, its reach grew globally, and now it’s hard to find someone without at least one cap featuring the New York Yankees logo.

Today, New Era holds over 500 licenses, including NBA, MLB, NHL, and NFL teams, and remains the exclusive manufacturer and retailer of team caps. At Footshop, you’ll find a wide selection of Major League Baseball team caps and apparel, along with team-themed gear from the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Dodgers.

The most popular cap styles include the New Era 9Forty and New Era 9Fifty, but you can’t go wrong with the New Era 39Thirty either.