1 August 2025 |
Alexandra Saint Mleux, Lily Muni He, and Kika Gomes are the names to know.
What do a pro LPGA golfer, a finance girl, an art curator, a model, and a medical student have in common? It sounds like the setup for a joke, but these are the day jobs of some of the wives and girlfriends of prominent Formula 1 drivers. With names like Lily Muni He (girlfriend of Williams’ Alex Albon), Alexandra Saint Mleux (girlfriend of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc), and Francesca “Kika” Gomes (girlfriend of Alpine’s Pierre Gasly), they boast millions of followers and lucrative brand partnerships. Gen Z women are flocking to them in droves, reflecting a new generation of WAG culture that’s young, digitally savvy, and no less stylish than their predecessors.
WAG culture isn’t new. In the 90s, it rose to cultural prominence, courtesy of the wives and girlfriends of England’s preeminent soccer players. Women like Louise Redknapp, Ulrika Jonsson, and Danielle Souness set a new standard, elevating themselves from being supporting partners confined to the background to moguls in their own right. Perhaps most notable of that era are Cheryl Cole and Victoria Beckham, with the former cultivating a successful television career and the latter transforming her notoriety into a fashion and cosmetics empire.
But summer 2025 has arguably been the season of the WAG, with a renaissance across multiple sports. Paige Lorenze and Morgan Riddle are among the prominent partners of top-ranked tennis players. Jordyn Woods famously dates New York Knicks’ Karl-Anthony Towns. Even the WNBA has gotten in on the phenomenon with the Dallas Wings’ Paige Bueckers hard launching her relationship with Azzi Fudd, a college basketball player, during All-Star weekend.
F1 is a recent addition to the mix. The sport’s most prominent WAG as of late was Nicole Scherzinger, who dated Lewis Hamilton from 2007 to 2015. In the decade since their relationship ended, motorsports have exploded in popularity. Women now comprise three out of four of new F1 fans, with 50% self-identifying as Gen Z. As much as these fans are following the drivers, they are also paying close attention to the drivers’ partners, chronicling their every move and wanting to emulate their style. The paddock has become a way to show off the WAGs’ personal style, and the savviest of the bunch treat it like a runway.
Among them, Saint Mleux, 24, is the most well-known with 2.4 million Instagram followers. The art curator burst onto the scene in 2023, creating a frenzy during an appearance at Wimbledon with Leclerc that confirmed their relationship. “She has an ‘It’ girl factor to her and makes a statement every time she makes an appearance,” says Alessandra Gio, a motorsport and fashion influencer. Beloved for her savvy fashion choices, Saint Mleux is praised for her choice to match looks to the culture of each Grand Prix location. Case in point: during the Monaco Grand Prix, she wore red and white both days, as a nod to the country’s flag, while at the Miami race she wore a Jacquemus dress that paid homage to the American flag.
AlexandraSaintMleuxStyle, run by two individuals who asked to be identified by their first names, Livia and Hejar, boasts 60,000 followers and is a popular fan account. Followed by Saint Mleux herself, the duo saw an opportunity to highlight women who were aspirational yet relatable to their generation. “It’s great seeing [Saint Mleux and other Gen Z WAGs] mix designer finds with more everyday clothes. Being able to purchase readily accessible pieces from a store where anyone could buy a top from anywhere around the world really speaks to the Gen Z audience,” Hejar says.
And that’s precisely Saint Mleux’s trick to mass appeal. On the one hand, she’s wearing Meshki, an Australian label favored by Gen Z for their affordable, on-trend basics and flirty dresses. Her love affair with the pieces led to the two partnering on a capsule collection, with styles that instantly sold out. Luxury brands are also taking note. “[Saint Mleux] was one of the first people I saw wearing that leopard print pony hair Saint Laurent bag, which they had only seeded out to Hailey Bieber and Zoe Kravitz. I can’t say definitely that she was [gifted the item], and that she didn’t just buy it. But with her followers growing and fan accounts talking about what she’s wearing, brands will notice that and want to work with her,” says Eliza Huber, senior fashion editor at Who What Wear and the brains behind f1paddockfits, an F1 style account. Huber is correct — Saint Mleux sat front row at Jaquemus this past June, and chances are high she’ll pop up during fashion month.
Another popular Gen Z WAG is Gomes, 22, a Portuguese model who is beloved for her minimal style. Seen in everything from fast fashion brands like PepperMayo to mid-price labels like Maje to the likes of Versace, she has a knack for relatable outfits. Her look for the 2024 Monaco Grand Prix was a hit on the internet. Consisting of Zara jeans, a simple white button-down, and Hermès Oran sandals, fans were quick to compliment her mix of affordable and luxury items, commenting that they appreciated her choice to eschew a head-to-toe designer ensemble. It’s no surprise then that she was among the first to wear the Perfect Moment x Alpine collaboration, given that the French luxury outdoors brand is popular among Gen Z and millennials for their eye-catching designs
Caitlin, who prefers to be identified by her first name, runs KikaGomesOutfit. She believes Gomes’ appeal goes beyond just clothing: “Her effortlessly cool style made me fall in love with her, but I’m more of a fan because of who she is as a person.” With a silly, engaging personality, it’s easy to see why she has one million Instagram followers and 700,000 TikTok followers. From doing classic get-ready-with-me videos to jumping on trending sounds with her boyfriend, Gasly, to sillier moments like using hair oil as body oil out of desperation before making an appearance in the paddock, she often gets comments like “most relatable WAG ever.”
You can’t talk about F1 WAGs without mentioning He. The professional golfer has over one million followers on Instagram and is known for her love of fashion with a capital F. From Maison Margiela Tabi shoes to Miu Miu skirts to Coperni tops, she’s not afraid to appear on race day with a look. It’s this fearlessness that’s highly appealing. Isabelle, who runs ClosetofLilymhe, cites the WAG’s unique style and love for vintage as one of the main reasons for the account’s existence. She also notes that He’s celebration of her Chinese heritage, like showing up to the Shanghai Grand Prix in a Rohe blouse with knotted clasps, plays a huge role as well. “I love the way she shows her culture through her fashion so consistently. She inspired me to embrace it as well.”
Collectively, with their millions of followers and exponential reach, these women add a new layer of anticipation to the sport. Instead of dissecting what points or positions the F1 drivers will earn, for this subset of Gen Z fans, the WAGs themselves are analyzed. It’s become a game among fans to predict what they will wear. “There’s a buzz leading up to the race weekend. Their outfits are anticipated just as much as the race itself,” says Caitlin. And for brands, such rapt attention is marketing gold. “24 weeks a year, and 3 days a weekend, [they] have the opportunity to dress someone who is getting photographed. Everyone is sharing it, and everyone wants to know who they’re wearing; it’s a really lucrative opportunity,” explains Huber.
What does this mean for the future of F1 WAG culture? Expect more designer moments, capsule collections, and new women rising to prominence. But no matter what, Gen Z fans make it clear that they are here for the WAGs themselves as individuals and not due to their partners. “It’s not about being an accessory to the drivers,” says Livia and Hejar. “You’re not just someone’s girlfriend or wife. You have your presence and aesthetic. That’s what makes it exciting.”
Header photo: Courtesy of @kikagomes, JACQUEMUS, and @lilymhe
