TIME MACHINE: 1979

FILA’s Time Machine entertains us in 2025. Today, It takes us back to 1979, an action-packed year for many reasons! On 9 December 1979, the WHO announced the eradication of smallpox, an infectious disease that had, only a few decades earlier, caused widespread epidemics in areas such as Asia, Africa and South America. A few months earlier, Francis Ford Coppola made  cinema history with Apocalypse Now, inspired by the book ‘A Heart of Darkness’. It contained one of the most masterful acting performances ever; Marlon Brando as  Kurtz. Musically, the spotlight was on Pink Floyd, who under the direction of Roger Waters gave birth to The Wall, a theatrically inspired concept album.

In 1979, we also witnessed the dominance of the FILA icon par excellence: Björn Borg. The Time Machine already introduced him to us a few blog posts back (precisely in 1976). However, back then, he was just beginning. In 1979, he was at the peak of his career. In 1979 Borg, at only twenty-three years of age, was already a legend. In the words of Luca Marianantoni, he was ‘the greatest phenomenon ever to appear on the court, with a popularity equal to that of Muhammad Ali’. His ground stroke playing style had already been established, as had his strong forward rotation and two-handed backhand. All these were played with intuition, precision and perfection. In 1979, only two opponents stood a chance against him: the American Jimmy Connors and the Argentine player Guillermo Vilas, who was an old FILA acquaintance. There were also only two tennis players capable of sending him into spin mode: Adriano Panatta—the only player to defeat him (in Paris)—and John McEnroe, who we will discuss in future posts. In 1979, in the middle of the three-year golden period of 1978-80, Borg was an undisputed star and reigned over the Paris Open – Wimbledon tennis circuit. On 29 August 1979, he made a statement to Jane Gross of The New York Times that left no room for doubt: ‘I want to be known as the best tennis player of all time’.

By now, Björn Borg is also a sex symbol – adored from the stands and hounded by fans and paparazzi. His allure and public image are (in part) thanks to FILA, the brand that created the historic BB1 polo shirt especially for him. In 1979, the champion’s look was enriched by the second BB suit jacket, distinguished by a straight line placed at chest height and two parallel lines placed on the left shoulder. In navy blue, red and/or white, it was a breakthrough style in the brand’s visual language and an elegant accent that helped shape the image of the legend.