Fashion has always been a powerful way to express ourselves, and the colors we wear, psychologists say, reflect our personality.

While some people seek to show their individuality by their clothes, sports fans, conversely, show unity by wearing the same colors – their way of expressing their loyalty to and passion for their favorite team. But with sports on hold due to the coronavirus, and most of American society practicing social distancing for health concerns, fans at least temporarily don’t have the ability to show that color and fashion connection en masse.

“This can magnify the emptiness and isolation we all feel,” says Deni Sciano (www.ScoreGameDayBag.com), an entrepreneur who founded SCORE! Designs, LLC, a certified, women-owned designer handbag company based in San Antonio, Texas. “But one thing this long time-out in sports serves to remind us of is how sports bring us all together, and how we can maintain that bond even while the games are in a time-out.

“Nowhere is that spirit better seen than in the team logos and representative colors that we wear at stadiums, work, malls, restaurants or home. Now those gatherings are temporarily gone, but you can still feel that connection by wearing your team colors during a walk, a trip to the grocery store, or during a video chat, showing the hope that things will soon get back to normal.”

Sciano explains the power of color passion that fans wear:

Gives a sense of belonging. When sports fans show their true colors, so to speak, it makes them feel part of the team. “Now more than ever, people need a sense of belonging,” Sciano says. “When you wear your team’s colors, that loyalty and passion unifies you with all the team’s fans at the event, heightening your sense of belonging. It breaks down walls and brings a common bond, provides a sense of self-esteem, says we’re all on the same team and brings us great camaraderie. Win or lose, we are in this together.”

Completes your outfit. Women have become a bigger part of the sports merchandising industry in recent years, but they accessorize differently than men. “For a long time, women didn’t have the ability to accessorize their game-day apparel, in their own way, like men did,” Sciano says. “But now, a wider variety of accessories is available for women. People don’t realize that women usually don’t want to be a walking billboard and plaster themselves with team logos. They just want colors that reflect their rooting interest and can be worn in a variety of ways and flexibility of use – on hair ribbons, jewelry, shoes, handbags, socks, backpacks, etc.”

Enhances self-identity. The wearing of the jersey of a favorite athlete or team is a fan’s way to identify with them and align themselves with that player or team’s way of doing things, win or lose. “It’s a manifestation of ego that heightens positive self-esteem and announces to strangers that this connection makes them an integral part of the team,” Sciano says. “Identifying with someone successful, or trying hard to be successful, says something about the fan’s personality, primarily that they have important reasons to remain loyal.”

“This challenging time for our country and our world has greatly limited our ability to interact socially,” Sciano says. “But our true team colors are still there for us to wear, and even if alone, those colors can help us feel connected while lifting our spirits.”