Zubaz (pronounced /ˈzuːbæz/ zoo-baz[1]) is a brand of shorts and pants that became popular during the early 1990s. They were created in 1988 by two professional wrestlers, the Road Warriors, as a comfortable, functional short for weightlifting.
They hoped to make a short that would stretch and expand with the body during a workout. In a short time, the shorts became wildly popular in the United States. The Zubaz company sold $100 million worth of products in 1991 alone. The company slogan was "Dare to be Different."
Although Zubaz began as a line of shorts, the brand was extended into long pants, caps, shirts, and even diapers. The pants are tapered at the ankle, with the outer part of the leg being longer than the inner part. They have an elastic waistband to allow for greater flexibility and movement. The pants were originally created in a zebra print, but later began to be sold in almost any design imaginable.
Regardless of the specific design, Zubaz are almost always bright, flashy, and often ostentatious. Zubaz designed the uniforms of several Arena Football League teams in the early 1990s, including the Tampa Bay Storm and the now-defunct New Orleans Night. However, these designs were considered outlandish and were soon replaced.
In a 1993 survey in Inside Sports magazine, Zubaz finished third in the voting for Worst Thing to Happen in Sports that year. Ahead of it were the retirement of Michael Jordan and the death of wrestler Dino Bravo.
The long pants were the most popular item in the product line. Despite the decline of its popularity, it is not uncommon to spot a rabid fan wearing Zubaz pants at a professional football game, usually bearing the same colors of the team he/she is rooting for.
Zubaz manufactured "slider shorts." These shorts had the famous wild patterns at the bottom of the garment while the rest of the garment displayed the name and logo of the sport team and the Zubaz name.
The original business went bankrupt in 1996[2] and Truax and Stock bought back the trademark rights. In 2007, Zubaz resurfaced, offering a limited production release of the original classic Zubaz patterns.
In another sign of the resurrection of the Zubaz brand, on July 16, 2008 the Saint Paul Saints independent professional baseball team wore Zubaz pants during their game against the Sioux City Explorers. The bases were also painted in a recognizable Zubaz tiger-striped pattern.